


Cruel Intentions

by Perpetual_Nonsense



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/F, fleurmione - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-26
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:01:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 29
Words: 207,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23329651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Perpetual_Nonsense/pseuds/Perpetual_Nonsense
Summary: Fleur Delacour is a seductive, manipulative heiress who gets what she wants when she wants it. Bored with her life, she decides she needs a challenge and sets her sights on Hermione Granger, the golden girl, during the Triwizard Tournament. She plans to take Hermione's virginity by the third task; Hermione has other plans. FleurXHermione
Relationships: Fleur Delacour/Hermione Granger
Comments: 251
Kudos: 437





	1. The Bet

**Author's Note:**

> I've already posted this story on Fanfic and honestly didn't know about AO3 until someone tipped me off that another author had plagiarized it on here. So now I found this site, I figured I would post it on here as well in case there are users who aren't on fanfic :) I'm still learning how to navigate this site and how posting chapters and such work so please be patient with me lol

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've already posted this story on Fanfic and honestly didn't know about AO3 until someone tipped me off that another author had plagiarized it on here. So now I found this site, I figured I would post it on here as well in case there are users who aren't on fanfic :) I'm still learning how to navigate this site and how posting chapters and such work so please be patient with me lol

_**French** _

_'thoughts'_

The Beauxbatons carriage was buzzing with excitement as they made their ascent to Hogwarts where the triwizard tournament would be held this year. The halls of the carriage was littered with women chatting excitedly as a certain blonde pushed her way through the crowd with her head held high, a brown leather bound journal held securely under one arm. The girls seemed to part like the red sea did for Moses as she passed through, a few girls blushing as they checked out the Veela while others not so discreetly glared at her. The blonde didn't seem to notice or care about any of the stares as she walked into her friends room unannounced as usual.

" _Mon Dieu_." The blonde sighed as she lost her refined demeanor and plopped down onto an open chair.

 _ **"Something the matter Fleur?"**_ Came the amused voice of her friend Veronique who sat elegantly on the edge of her bed. Her long black hair slightly covered her face and hid her forest green eyes as she grabbed hold of her necklace shaped like a big cross from around her neck. She pushed a button and the top unlocked revealing a little spoon built in to the necklace. A white substance sat on the tiny utensil as she lifted it up to her nose, inhaling deeply through one nostril while pushing in the other. She leaned back and closed her eyes, relishing in the feeling before closing the top back up, and delicately patting at her nose to discard any evidence.

 _ **"I'm sick of sleeping with these insipid French debutantes."**_ Fleur grumbled as she stood up and looked at a painting on the raven haired girl's wall, seeming to talk to the person in the portrait. _**"**_ _ **Nothing shocks them anymore."**_

 _ **"Aren't you a debutante?"**_ Her friend Odette laughed, her pearly white teeth showing behind almost too big lips covered in red lipstick chosen to match her dark red locks and bring out her light blue eyes.

 _ **"Hardly."**_ Fleur glared at the laughing red head while an amused smirk found its way onto Veronique's face.

 _ **"Calm down. There will be plenty of new prospects at this school. We will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter**."_ Veronique grinned wickedly.

 _ **"I don't want that. I want a challenge."**_ Fleur practically whined.

 _ **"Harry Potter goes to Hogwarts. He would be a nice notch to add to your bedpost."**_ Odette smiled up at Fleur as she filed her nails.

 _ **"Too easy."** _The Veela sighed.

 _ **"Do you have someone else in mind?"**_ Veronique looked bored.

The blonde's perfect lips formed into a devious smile. _" **As a matter of fact I do."**_

Veronique raised an eyebrow. _**"Who?"**_

"Hermione Granger." Fleur said the name slowly, already liking the taste of it on her lips.

"Hermione Granger?" The dark haired girl leaned forward, the conversation finally starting to pique her interest or maybe it was the pixie dust she just snorted starting to finally do it's job. _**"The brightest witch of her age? The golden girl?"**_

" _Oui._ " Fleur grinned, opening her journal and pulling out The Daily Prophet. She opened it up to a middle page where there was a picture of the brunette smiling, showing her perfect pearly whites. _**"She wrote this article on house elves."**_

Veronique snatched the paper out of Fleur's hands and Odette was quick to sit on the bed behind her friend, looking closely at the picture of the golden girl.

 _ **"She's a lot more attractive than I thought she would be."**_ Odette mumbled as she tucked one of her red locks behind her ear.

 _ **"You're good, but you're not that good. There's no way you're going to get Hermione Granger."**_ Veronique scoffed as she tossed the paper off to the side.

 _ **"And I'm pretty sure she's a virgin."**_ Odette chimed in, looking up at her blonde friend.

 _ **"Which is why she is the perfect challenge."**_ Fleur smirked, crossing her arms. _**"She is the paradigm of chastity and virtue."**_

Veronique rolled her eyes at her friends confidence. _**"You're out of your league."**_

 _ **"Can you imagine what this will do for my reputation?"**_ Fleur ignored her friends and looked up with clouded over sapphire eyes as if she could see the future already unfolding. _**"Screwing Hermione Granger during the Triwizard Tournament . . . She'll be my greatest victory."**_

Veronique swore her eyes were going to permanently roll into the back of her head if the blonde kept this up. _**"You don't stand a chance. It's never going to happen."**_

 _ **"I'll have her in my bed before the last task even starts."** _Fleur didn't miss a step, flicking her dark haired friends nose to further prove her point and tick her off.

 _ **"You sound awfully confident Fleur. Care to make a wager?"**_ Veronique sat up, smirking at the overly confident Veela.

A mischievous glint popped into those light blue eyes. _**"What's the bet?"**_

 _ **"Not this again."**_ Odette sighed.

_**"If you take her virginity before the third task I will give you that shiny car I have that you love so much."** _

Fleur raised an eyebrow. _**"And if I don't?"**_

 _ **"Then I get to take that little journal you're always carrying around . . . and 10,000 galleons."**_ Veronique's green eyes sparked with glee when she saw Fleur hesitate for a moment, looking down at her leather bound journal she has poured so much personal information into. _**"What's the matter Fleur?"**_ She smirked at the blonde's apprehension as she stood up. _**"You do not look very confident anymore. Are you afraid that you will not be able to do it?"**_

" _Non._ " Fleur looked back up with a smile as her arctic eyes locked on to Veronique's inquiring orbs. _**"I was just imagining how good I'm going to look driving in that muggle car of yours."**_

A devious grin broke out on Veronique's face as she held out her hand. _**"So it's a bet?"**_

" _Oui._ " Fleur smiled, grabbed hold of her friend's outstretched hand, and shook it, sufficiently sealing the deal.

/

"I don't understand what all the bloody ruckus is about." Hermione grumbled as she tried to push through basically the entire population of Hogwarts standing on the bridge; each person trying to push to the front to catch a glimpse of the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students piling out of either a carriage or ship.

"Krum! I see Krum!" Ron crowed when he successfully made his way to the front of the crowd.

Hermione just rolled her eyes, trying to continue on her journey, her book held tightly to her chest when she heard Harry's voice chime in. "Which one?"

"Not you too Harry!" Hermione yelled out in exasperation when she saw his messy dark hair pop up next to the red heads. _'You would think they would grow up after defeating the dark lord in our fifth year, but no, at the age of 17 they just keep getting more and more immature.'_ She thought to herself glumly as she finally made her way through the crowd so she could head to the library for some light reading.

Before Hermione knew it it was dinner time and Ron was chirping in her ear, going on and on about Viktor Krum and his quidditch stats between mouthfuls of food. She internally sighed, wishing the tournament wasn't taking place during her last year so she could enjoy it.

Dumbledore cleared his throat and everyone turned their attention to the headmaster, anxious for him to announce the arrival of the students that would be staying with them this year at Hogwarts.

The doors to the dining hall burst open and in flowed a stream of blue; it seemed the Beauxbaton students would be the first to make their appearance. The girls danced down the isles with one doing a twirl and curtseying next to her headmistress. Hermione tried not to pay any mind to them, keeping her nose in her book as everyone practically drooled over the women, but she felt a burning sensation in the back of her head as if she was being watched. She tried to shake off the feeling, but it persisted.

She finally caved in and turned her head to see three pairs of eyes looking in her direction; one pair a regular shade of blue, one pair a deep green, and a third the lightest shade of blue she had ever seen. She had grown accustomed to people staring at her especially after the defeat of Voldemort and the seemingly random spurt of puberty she went through during her sixth year, but she couldn't stop a light blush from forming on her cheeks when she realized how gorgeous the trio was, especially the blonde one who seemed to be looking the most intently at her.

"Those three girls are checking us out mate!" Ron grinned, hitting Harry on the shoulder. The raven haired boy turned his attention to where Ron was looking, a dark blush forming on his own cheeks when he looked at the three beauties.

"They're only looking at you like that, because they think you're the chosen one." Hermione rolled her eyes, inwardly seething at the fact Ron thought they were looking at the boys.

"But I am the chosen one." Harry said quietly to Hermione, causing the girl to immediately hit him over the head with her book on instinct. "Ouch. Sorry." He ducked his head with a sheepish grin, rubbing the back of his head that had recently been abused.

"Don't get your knickers in a twist Mione. There's three of them. One for each of us." Ron wiggled his brow suggestively with a shit eating grin on his face.

"I wasn't thinking about that Ronald!" The brunette threw a piece of chicken at the laughing red head who proceeded to pick up and eat the chicken after it hit him. "Honestly, you boys can be unbearable sometimes." She grumbled, trying to make her blush fade as the Beauxbaton girls took their seats at the Ravenclaw table.

Next to come in with a loud bang were the boys from Durmstrang, making a show by flipping down the isles and blowing out fire with Viktor Krum at the head of them, causing everyone to burst out into a loud applause and excited conversations.

Once again Hermione felt eyes burning into the back of her head, but this time it was Viktor Krum's dark orbs boring a hole into her soul with an almost scarily serious expression on his face.

"Do you see the way Krum is looking at Mione?" Ron whispered to Harry excitedly before turning his attention back to the book worm. "I think he fancies you." He grinned.

"You're acting like a first year Ronald. The new students haven't been here for all of five minutes and you're already going on about who likes who." Hermione rolled her eyes for what felt like the millionth time that day.

Ron opened his mouth to retort, but was cut off by Dumbledore's booming voice, going into the rules of the tournament before he unveiled a burning cup. Everyone's eyes widened in wonder as they watched the blue flames lick at the air, just waiting to devour whatever was thrown into it. The headmaster went on to explain the usual rules of the school to the newcomers and Hermione couldn't help but notice the blonde in the group of Beauxbaton girls laughing during the headmasters speech. _'How rude can you get?'_ The brunette glared at the blonde over her shoulder. Whatever little bit of wonder and curiosity Hermione had felt towards the blonde quickly fizzled out when she took note of how arrogant she seemed to be.

"I'm definitely putting my name in." Ron grinned at Harry and Hermione, pulling the brunette's gaze away from the Ravenclaw table. "Are you guys going to as well?"

"Yeah." Harry grinned while Hermione inwardly scoffed.

"Definitely not. I had enough excitement fighting Voldemort with you lot, but it seems you two can't stay out of danger for more than a year without growing bored." Hermione grumbled, finally about to take a bite of her salad when a soft voice cut in from behind them.

"Excuse me, are you wanting ze bouillabaisse?"

Hermione looked up to see that same insufferable blonde standing behind her and now that she was standing closer to the Gryffindor she was able to see how beautiful she really was which just seemed to irritate Hermione further. Her silvery blonde hair flowed down to her waist, her teeth were almost too white and perfectly straight, and her light blue eyes seem to gleam with fake innocence. Even though she seemed to ask the table for the soup her eyes were firmly locked on the book worm. Hermione felt naked under her intense gaze, as if she was trying to bore her way into Hermione's soul and consume her so she looked away, trying to hide her blush and lose herself in her book again; pointedly ignoring the French girl.

"Yeah, have it." Harry was the first one to finally speak up, pushing the dish towards her with a grin while Ron sat there, his face turning purple.

"You 'ave finished wiz it?" She was more speaking to Hermione than the two boys who had their eyes locked on her along with the rest of the hall except of course for the brunette.

"Yeah," Ron said breathlessly. "Yeah, it was excellent."

Fleur hesitantly took the soup, wanting to linger as long as she could to try and get some sort of reaction out of the book worm, but when she realized Hermione had nothing to say to her she turned sharply on her heel, heading back to her table with a scowl where her two friends were laughing at her failure.

Odette laughed, holding her sides. _**"Great start."**_

Veronique laughed with the red head, causing the blonde's scowl to deepen. _**"Yeah, it really looked like you had her eating out of the palm of your hand Fleur. This will be easy."**_

 _ **"Shut up."**_ Fleur grumbled as she sat down and pushed her soup around angrily with a light blush on her face. The pictures of Hermione in the paper really didn't do her justice; the black and white didn't show her brown hair with strands of blonde hidden in her soft wavy locks, the flecks of gold in her light brown eyes, or how her tanned skin made her teeth look even whiter.

 _ **"You're not seriously going after Hermione Granger are you?"**_ Came Fleur's 15 year old sister Garbrielle's unamused voice.

Fleur glared over at the mini version of herself. _**"Mind your business Gabrielle."**_

Gabrielle glared right back at her sister, way beyond tired of her antics. **_"You're going to make our family look bad. Grandma will be pissed if she finds out you're going after the golden girl."_**

 _ **"If you tell grandma I'm going to kill you."**_ Fleur kicked her little sister under the table, causing the younger one to jump a bit before kicking her older sibling back.

 ** _"Whatever. She is never going to go for you anyway."_ **Gabrielle rolled her eyes. _**"She helped defeat Voldemort and is the brightest witch of her age. You have nothing to offer her."**_

Veronique and Odette snickered behind their glasses of pumpkin juice, trying to hide how amused they were by their friend who looked like steam was going to start pouring out of her ears at any moment from her sister's remark.

 _ **"I am next in line to lead the Delacour clan."**_ Fleur sat up straighter, trying to exude some air of authority. _**"I have riches, charm, and beauty. I can get anyone I want."**_ She flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder, putting her nose up in the air.

 _ **"Anyone except Hermione Granger."**_ Gabrielle smirked at the older Veela. _**"I don't think she cares much for your riches, your charm, or your beauty. She is not the typical stupid girl or boy you usually go after Fleur."**_

Fleur was about to lunge across the table to strangle her unbearable little sister that she was forced to take along with her when Veronique placed a hand on her forearm, stilling her.

 _ **"Now now Fleur. Don't go killing your sister in front of Hermione. You have already made a bad first impression."**_ The dark haired girl laughed, seeing the blonde turn even redder. She looked like she was about to snap, but stopped herself when she saw the brunette stand up from her table with her friends and head for the door. She took a moment, desperately trying to see what was under those loose robes, but it seemed everyone had the same idea to leave and head to bed, sufficiently blocking any chance of a view she was hoping to get of Hermione's body.

 _ **"Let's just go. I'm not going to make any progress with her tonight."**_ Fleur grumbled as she stood up and headed to the carriage with her friends and her little sister in tow.

/

The next day Hermione was heading to her advanced potions class, head down with her nose in a book as usual when someone bumped into her. "Sorry." Hermione looked up, but saw no one in front of her. She looked behind her to see students going about their day as usual, none of them showing any sign of irritation for being bumped into. _'That's odd.'_ Hermione knit her brow in confusion before reluctantly continuing on her way. She may have been curious about the bump, but was much more worried about being on time for class. Seven years at Hogwarts and she had never been late for a class and she wasn't about to sully her perfect record now.

When she opened the door to the classroom her heart dropped into her stomach when her eyes landed on the insufferable blonde sitting amongst the students in the classroom along with her two friends and Viktor Krum off in his own corner seemingly deep in thought. _'Bloody brilliant.'_ Hermione inwardly grumbled to herself as she tried to slip in unnoticed, going to a table that wasn't occupied in hopes of saving a spot for Harry so she wouldn't get paired with Viktor or that girl.

To her horror Viktor seemed to sniff her out the second she walked in and took a seat next to her. "Hello." He awkwardly smiled at the brunette, trying not to stumble on the foreign english language when talking to the golden girl.

"H-hello." Hermione blushed under his intense gaze.

The interaction between the two did not go unnoticed by Fleur who sat in the back seething. When Hermione had walked past her she had planned to get out of her seat and sit next to the girl, but by the time she rose from her seat Viktor had already moved in. _'Zat damned Bulgarian better keep 'is filzy mitts off 'er if 'e knows what ees good for 'im.'_ She crossed her arms, glaring daggers at the two while Veronique and Odette burst out laughing at their friend, making the blonde fume even more.

Hermione looked behind her to see that dark haired girl and red head laughing at something she wasn't sure of, but it seemed to be directed at the blonde and that delighted her to no end. With her head turned in the direction of the back, she almost let out a breath of relief when she saw a mop of dark hair make its way into the classroom.

"Harry!" Hermione smiled at her friend who returned it in kind, looking a little confused at the fact Viktor was her partner. "I'm terribly sorry Viktor." The brunette turned to the famous seeker, trying to let him down easy. "But Harry and I already agreed to be partners." The Bulgarian's face dropped, making him look like a kicked puppy. "B-but-" She cut in, feeling guilt already build up at his defeated expression. "If we have another class together perhaps we can be partners in that one."

His face suddenly brightened up, smiling at the nerdy Gryffindor. "I vould like that very much Hermy-own."

Hermione opened her mouth to correct him, but thought better of it as he walked away, looking for a seat. He was trying after all.

Fleur felt a satisfied smirk cross her face when she saw Hermione send the seeker away to be replaced by Harry. _'Serves 'im right.'_ Fleur huffed, glaring at the boy, but soon her smirk dropped and her glare grew more intense when she realized he was heading her way. She looked around the classroom to see there were no other open spots except for her. She inwardly screamed as he took his seat next to her and her friends started laughing even harder. _'I swear I am going to kill zose girls some day.'_

When Harry took his seat next to Hermione she gave him an appreciative smile as she pulled out her potions book, trying to ignore the loud laughter coming from the back of the classroom.

"Hermione, you dropped something." Harry leaned down, picking up a folded piece of paper.

Hermione looked at the paper in her friends hand. "That's not mine."

"It fell out of your potions book and has your name on it." Harry turned it over to show her name written in neat cursive.

"That's odd." She frowned, grabbing the piece of parchment, and opening it immediately. After reading a couple of lines her eyebrows rose high up her forehead.

"What's it say?" Harry moved over to read the letter, but Hermione was quick to fold it.

"It's nothing." She replied, stuffing it back into her bag while Harry shrugged.

After tossing the parchment into her bag she couldn't help but furrow her brow in confusion at what the letter said. She looked over her shoulder at the blonde in the back, looking as if she was trying to decipher something, but quickly looked away when Fleur caught her staring and winked with that insufferably confident look she wore on her face almost 24/7. She looked back down at her bag and the letter that was hidden in it, the first line of the letter burning itself into her mind. _'Do not trust Fleur Delacour.'_


	2. Choke

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, here's the second chapter :D I'll be updating this as much as possible. Songs usually help me with my writing process so I will always happily share what somewhat inspired the chapter. For this one, the song Choke by I Don't Know How But They Found me helped grease the wheels if you want to give it a listen. Anyways, I just want to thank everyone who left a comment, kudos, bookmarked, or even bothered reading this fic. I greatly appreciate it :)  
> OH and as a friendly reminder, French is in bold and italics and thoughts are in just plain italics!  
> Okay, I'll shut up now so you can read :D haha

Hermione settled herself into her usual spot in the library, thankful to be in her sanctuary, away from all of the new students and their curious stares. She was starting to feel like a caged animal at the zoo on display and all of the new students were the tourists fogging up the glass with their faces pressed against it . Ever since she, Harry, and Ron had defeated Voldemort in the department of mysteries their fifth year, with the help of the order of course, people just seemed to gravitate towards her. She supposed it's because she is now a celebrity of sorts and was no longer the mousey girl she used to be, but she still liked her alone time all the same.

She pulled out her charms book, a piece of parchment, and her quill, ready to get lost in her homework. As soon as she leaned forward and her quill touched the parchment she felt a chill run down her spine. 'Bloody Hell. I just can't seem to catch a break today.' The brunette inwardly groaned; she could feel eyes on her once again and she was pretty sure of who they belonged to. She wanted to scream out in frustration; she had thought the library would be the safest place to hide from people, but it seemed fate saw it suitable to punish her.

Even though she could hear the soft sound of heals clicking on the ground growing closer she made a point not to look up from her homework, deciding she would work though the discomfort and not give the blonde the time of day. If the letter she received was even slightly accurate, which it seemed to be, giving Fleur Delacour the slightest bit of acknowledgement, even if it was negative would just encourage her.

She bit her tongue to keep herself from saying anything when she heard the chair next to hers scrape across the floor, the eerie silence of the library making it sound even more offensive. She kept her face neutral and acted as if she heard nothing while the Veela gracefully sat herself in the vacant seat next to her, pulling out her own books and plopping them onto the table unnecessarily loud in what Hermione assumed was an attempt to get her attention. Unfortunately for Fleur such childish things didn't work on the golden girl; if anything it just encouraged Hermione to keep her mouth closed even more and made her want to pointedly ignore the blonde.

Fleur had to resist letting out a huff when Hermione didn't even flinch or let her eyes drift over to the person who had decided to take the seat next to hers. It was safe to say the blonde wasn't used to being ignored and didn't know how to handle it in the least so she decided to mirror the girl next to her and start doing her own homework.

Hermione had to stop herself from raising an eyebrow when Fleur didn't immediately try to talk to her, but instead she seemed to be working quietly. She had expected her to get to the point of pulling on her hair like a petulant child, but it seemed the blonde wasn't as immature as she thought. She almost let out a relieved sigh when she felt as if she might be able to get some actual work done with Fleur next to her, but it was just a fleeting thought. Ten minutes into the blonde being there and the Veela's blue eyes were already drifting over to Hermione; she could feel them burning a hole in the side of her head and it made her want to scream.

Fleur had tried to concentrate on her work, really she did, but she couldn't stop herself from glancing over and observing the girl next to her. The crease in her brow when she was trying to work out a problem, the hairpin curve of her lips when she figured it out, the way she tucked her hair behind one ear when she grew nervous, and the light tapping of her fingertips on her desk when she became irritated. Wait . . . nervous . . . irritated . . . 'I seem to 'ave been caught.' Fleur cursed herself. She had wanted the Gryffindor to speak to her first, but it would seem her usual tactics are useless again Hermione Granger.

"You are 'Ermione Granger, oui?" Fleur finally broke the uncomfortable silence.

"Yup." Hermione replied without even looking up from her paper, trying to block the other girl out.

Fleur just seemed to hum in response to Hermione's lack of one. She tapped her quill on her parchment, trying to think of something clever to say to get the brunette to just glance in her direction and have an actual conversation.

"I read your article on 'ouse elves." Fleur pretended to write something on the parchment to feign disinterest, but found herself drawing instead.

"That's nice." The brunette mumbled.

"I found it quite appalling." Fleur continued her drawing, waiting for the other girls reaction.

"Thanks. Wait, what?" Hermione finally looked up from her homework, a look of surprise displayed on her countenance while Fleur had to hide the smirk that wanted to form on her own face. "Most people found it to be insightful."

"Most people are sheep." Fleur shrugged, continuing with her art.

"What was so appalling about it?" Hermione glared at the blonde who seemed too busy drawing to fully engage in the conversation. "House elves deserving respect? Equal rights? Freedom?"

"Non." Fleur finally placed her quill down, secretly satisfied and finding it adorable how ruffled she got the golden girl with such few words. She lifted her light blue eyes to finally meet those angry brown, the gold flecks seeming to burn her. "I am not a bigot. 'owever, in your article, I did not see a single reference to the 'ouse elves you spoke to." Hermione opened her mouth in surprise, completely unprepared for that response. "I'm assuming by your lack of response zat you did not talk to a zingle elf about any of zis. Who are you to decide what is best for an entire race? Do you even care about what zey want?"

"Of course I do!" Hermione finally replied; the french girl had completely taken her by surprise. She had assumed the first thing she would say would be some sleazy pick up line but instead she attacked her article

"Zat is why you asked them?" Fleur replied sarcastically.

"Well . . . I . . ." For once Hermione was a little lost. She didn't know what to say; Fleur was right, but she wasn't about to admit it. "Who wouldn't want those things?"

"'Ouse elves." Fleur shrugged. Hermione was about to open her mouth, but the Veela decided she should maybe better explain herself and not push the brunette too far away. "Don't get me wrong, I agree wiz you. I just zink you should probably talk to a 'ouse elf or two before you go fighting a battle zey don't even want fought. At least not yet. Change does not 'appen over night."

"I suppose you might have a point." Hermione grumbled, turning her attention back to her homework.

"I must apologize. I 'ave attacked your article without properly introducing myself. I am-"

"I know who you are." Hermione interrupted the blonde. She glanced over at Fleur's outstretched hand and pointedly left it hanging in the air.

"Oh?" A sly smile formed on Fleur's face as she withdrew her hand. 'She's fiery. Perfect.' She leaned in towards the brunette, slightly invading her personal space.

"Fleur Delacour." Hermione put down her quill, turning to face the blonde with an unreadable expression on her face, seemingly unaffected by Fleur's proximity. "Better known as Fleur the conquerer. Heir to the Delacour clan. Rich, beautiful, and most of all entitled. She thinks she owns everyone and everything." The cocky smile slowly slid from Fleur's face; it would seem someone had sold her out. "Every word she utters out of her mouth has an ulterior motive, a dishonorable intention. She sees people as objects, trophies, another notch on her bedpost, another thing to own and break. Any person she has successfully pursued has regretted it. Do not trust her."

"W-where did you 'ear zose zings?" Was the only thing Fleur was able to choke out in her shocked state while Hermione packed up her things.

"I have my sources, but I guess what I'm trying to say is . . ." Hermione stood up, slinging her book bag over her shoulder before she looked at the veela with clear distaste. "I've been warned about you."

"By whom?" Fleur clenched her hands into tight fists under the table, trying to keep her composure and look of innocence.

"I am sworn to secrecy, but good luck on your next conquest." Hermione shot Fleur a fake smile that shook the veela to her core. She imagined Hermione would wear that same smile if she were to watch the blonde suffocate and die.

'Shit.' Fleur cursed in her head as she watched the retreating form of Hermione Granger. No one had ever turned her down so swiftly, with words that could cut so deeply. She sat there for a moment, letting the Gryffindor's words sink in before she stood up and carelessly stuffed her things into her bag. She shoved the chair back in towards the desk before she stomped all the way back to the carriage.

As she stormed down the hallway of the Beauxbaton carriage people seemed to almost jump out of the raging girls way in an attempt to escape her wrath. She barely registered any of her surroundings, but somehow had made it to her own room, slamming the door behind her before she sat down on a chair. She pulled out her brown journal, mumbling the spell to open it, and started writing furiously, but even writing seemed to frustrate her. She didn't know what she wanted to say, didn't know how to convey what she was feeling with words so she tossed her quill to the side and grabbed different colored pencils and started drawing.

She drew the first thing that came to her mind, the thing that burned itself into her. It wasn't her breasts, her ass, or thighs. It was her eyes. The way they looked at her with such fire. She couldn't get the image out of her mind. She was so immersed, her hand moving quickly, coloring in brown with splashes of gold that she didn't hear the door open quietly behind her. She didn't hear the soft footsteps that approached, but her sixth sense seemed to kick in and she quickly snapped her journal shut.

 _ **"What were you drawing?"** _Veronique tilted her head to the side curiously.

 _ **"None of your business."** _Fleur glared over her shoulder at her friend.

 _ **"What's got your panties in a twist? Did things not go well with that Granger girl?"**_ The dark haired girl smirked.

 _ **"It seems someone warned her about me."** _Fleur tossed her journal back into her bag.

 _ **"Who do you think did it?"**_ Veronique looked at her nails in a bored manor.

 _ **"I don't know. Maybe Angelique or any of the other people that hate me."** _Fleur grumbled.

 _ **"So it could be anyone."** _Veronique laughed at the glare Fleur shot her. _**"Now, now Fleur. Don't get so bent out of shape."**_ She walked closer to the sulking blonde, reaching her hands down to start massaging Fleur's shoulders, which just made Fleur even more tense. _**"Losing to me isn't so bad."**_ Veronique said with her lips pressed against Fleur's ear, causing a soft shudder to run down the Veela's spine. _**"I can make losing quite enjoyable."**_ Fleur's eyes fluttered shut as she started to kiss Fleur's neck slowly while her hands ran down the blondes arms. _**"All you have to do . . ."**_ Veronique's hands found their way to the bottom of Fleur's dress, starting to lift it up. _**"Is say you give up."**_

 _ **"Never."**_ Fleur growled, her eyes snapping open as she grabbed her friend's hands to stop their progress before they got too far.

 _ **"We'll see about that."**_ Veronique laughed as she stepped away from the bristling blonde.

 _ **"Don't you have some pixie dust to be snorting or children to be torturing or something?"**_ Fleur grumbled as she stood up.

 _ **"Already done."**_ Veronique smiled and winked at the frowning veela. _**"Want to go get dinner?"**_

 _ **"Sure. Whatever."** _Fleur replied grumpily as they exited her room.

/

Hermione let out a soft sigh as she sat down at the Gryffindor table; she was only a week into the new school year and her patience was wearing thin. It was bad enough dealing with all of her peers after the golden trio had defeated Voldemort, but by the end of sixth year the excitement had died down. Now she has two new schools excited to see the trio that took down the dark lord. The worst part of it all was definitely Fleur Delacour, she had a feeling the blonde was going to be quite the pest. Hermione was just grateful someone was kind enough to warn her though; otherwise she might have given her a fair chance.

"Someone looks exhausted." Ginny grinned as she took a seat next to Hermione and started piling food onto her plate.

"It's been a long day." Hermoine grumbled.

"Where are the boys?" Ginny asked through a mouthful of food.

"Who knows." Hermione shrugged. "I'm just happy I don't have to listen to Ron go on about Viktor Krum right now."

"I hear he fancies you. Has he asked you on a date yet?" Ginny smiled cheekily, nudging her friend with her shoulder.

"Don't be ridiculous. We have barely spoken." Hermione rolled her eyes as she took a sip of her pumpkin juice.

"But you have spoken eh? I can already hear wedding bells." Ginny laughed. "Hermione Granger, the heart throb of Hogwarts strikes again"

"Is that what they're calling me?" Hermione just about spat out her drink with a look of mortification.

"No. It's what I call you." Ginny smiled, pinching Hermione's blushing cheek.

"Will you stop that!?" Hermione swatted the red head's hand away from her face making Ginny laugh even harder. "Honestly, you're just as bad as Harry and Ron."

"Perhaps." Ginny shrugged before going back to her food.

"Hey there Hermione. Ginny." Harry smiled as he took his seat across from the two girls quickly followed by Ron who proceeded to start stuffing his mouth with as much food as he could fit in it.

"Oi, Hermione. The new blonde is looking over here again." Ron chimed in around a mouthful of chicken, looking over at Fleur and sending what he thought to be a charming smile in her direction.

"Please don't encourage her Ronald." Hermione grumbled.

"Ooooh, sounds like something is going on." Ginny grinned, turning around. "Which blonde are you talking about?"

"Fleur Delacour. The one at Ravenclaw table boring holes in the back of Hermione's head." Harry nodded in Fleur's direction.

 _ **"Fleur, you're going to set Granger's hair on fire if you keep staring at her like that."**_ Veronique pinched the blonde under the table, making her jump.

 _ **"Shut up. I was just thinking."** _Fleur grumbled as she looked down at her meal, stabbing her food with a little more force than necessary. She ignored the smile Ron sent her way and a curious look from another red head. It would seem she was being talked about.

"Bloody Hell. She's gorgeous." Ginny whistled, checking out Fleur.

"Would you stop staring!" Hermione shoved Ginny. "You're being painfully obvious!"

"She can stare at us, but I can't stare at her?" Ginny huffed, glaring over at the bookworm.

"Why are you being so weird about her 'Mione?" Ron leaned forward.

"Does it have something to do with that letter?" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"Letter? What letter? Let me see!" Ginny grabbed Hermione's robes.

"Can't you guys ever mind your own business?" Hermione gave a hard glare at everyone, but it didn't seem to deter the group one bit as they looked at her expectantly. "Fine! Have it your way then!" She pulled the letter out of her book bag and tossed it onto the table between them.

Ginny was the first one to snatch it up due to her quick reflexes. She hastily unfolded the letter, her eyes darting from left to right. The further down the letter she got, the higher her brows rose. "Bloody Hell . . ." She tossed it over to Harry and Ron. "What a tosser." She glared at the blonde over her shoulder.

"Well . . ." Harry looked like he was lost for words as he handed the parchment over to Ron.

"I suppose that explains why she keeps looking at you." Ron handed the paper back to Hermione. "But do you reckon I might be on her list too?"

"You stupid troll!" Ron yelped as Ginny kicked him under the table. "Why would you want to be another one of her conquests?"

"Look at her! Who wouldn't-"

"Forget I asked." Ginny rolled her eyes, turning her attention back to the brunette. "Has she been bothering you a lot Hermione? Do you need me to have a talk with her?"

"No." Hermione shook her head and smiled at Ginny's protective nature. "She has tried talking to me, but hasn't been too aggressive."

"Perhaps if she thinks you're off the market she might back off." Harry shrugged.

"Oh and who would I be dating?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.

"Why Ginny Weasley of course. Future captain of the Holyhead Harpies." The redhead grinned, putting her arm around Hermione's shoulder and pulling her close as she sent another pointed glare in Fleur's direction while they boys almost choked on their food.

Fleur's usually calm demeanor slipped for all of a second, a look of shock adorning her face when she saw that same red head from before wrap an around around Hermione and send a nasty glare in her direction.

"E-excuse me . . ." A nervous sixth year Hufflepuff boy tapped Fleur's shoulder. When she turned around with a heated glare, the tall skinny brunette boy seemed to almost shrink into himself.

"Non." Was all she said before she turned her attention back to the Gryffindor table.

"B-but I-"

"Non. I will not go on a date wiz you." She abruptly stood from her seat and stormed out of the great hall, her two friends quickly following suit.

 _ **"Is it safe to assume things are not going too well with Hermione Granger?"**_ Odette hesitantly approached the fuming blonde leaning against the entrance to the great hall.

 _ **"Someone tipped her off about our dear Fleur."**_ Veronique smirked as she leaned on the wall next to Fleur who sent her a hard glare.

 _ **"Who?"**_ The redhead raised an eyebrow.

 _ **"That's the million galleon question."**_ The blonde crossed her arms, looking off to the side and observing some of the medieval architecture.

 _ **"Well you did say you wanted a challenge."** _Veronique laughed, earning an elbow to the ribs from the fuming veela.

 _ **"So we have a traitor in our midst."** _Odette watched as students started to pour out of the entrance to head to their dorms.

 _ **"It would seem so."**_ Veronique played with the cross hanging from her neck, itching to open it up and do a bump. _**"The odds are really stacked against you Fleur. You have already been sold out and she has a girlfriend."**_

 _ **"Yeah, right. There is no way Hermione Granger is dating that girl."** _Fleur rolled her eyes, trying to seem indifferent and brush off the unfamiliar sting of uncertainty. _**"She is far too busy to date when her nose is always stuck in a book."**_

 _ **"It's better than having it stuck up in the air."**_ Hermione had to stop herself from smirking when she saw that confident mask Fleur wore slip and her face slightly pale. She definitely had not been expecting the book worm to be passing by or for her to understand or speak her native tongue.

 _ **"You speak French . . .?"**_ Odette asked the obvious question her friend was too dumbstruck to ask.

 _ **"A little."**_ Hermione shrugged as she walked off with a laughing Ginny. The youngest Weasley had no idea what her friend had said, but it left the three girls, especially the blonde looking horrified and that beyond tickled and amused her. This was definitely going to be an interesting year to say the least.

 _ **"So do you want to deposit the money into my account now or -"**_ Veronique's dark green eyes looked over at the veela with an amused sparkle earning her another hard jab to the ribs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think it's safe to say Hermione doesn't take any shit from anyone haha Anyways, hope you guys liked it :D


	3. Girlfriend

"Good morning sweetie." Ginny smiled as she planted a wet kiss on Hermione's cheek, effectively pulling her attention from her book before she plopped onto the seat next to the bookworm in the dining hall.

"You don't really expect me to go along with this do you?" Hermione glared over at the red head already stuffing her face as she wiped the slobber off of her cheek with the sleeve of her robe.

"Hey! You could do a lot worse than me Hermione Granger." Ginny pointed a sausage at the brunette.

"I think you two would make a lovely couple." Came Luna's dreamy voice as she took a seat in front of the pair.

"Thank you Luna." Ginny smiled around a mouthful of food.

"Please don't encourage her." Hermione sighed.

"Excuse me . . ." Came a thick accent behind the brunette.

"Yes?" Hermione turned around to see the crimson red uniform of a Durmstrang student. The boy had blonde hair and soft brown eyes with a thick jaw and equally big and thick hands that seemed to be fidgeting behind his back.

"I vas vondering if you vould like to accompany me to Hogsmeade next weekend . . ." He gulped nervously before he continued. "On a date."

"I-" Hermione started with wide eyes, but was rudely interrupted by the youngest Weasley.

"Sorry mate. She's already taken." Ginny smiled cheekily at the Durmstrang student as she wrapped an arm around Hermione.

"Oh . . . I see." His cheeks turned a soft shade of pink. "I am terribly sorry. I didn't know."

"It's perfectly fine." Hermione looked at the boy sympathetically. It wasn't until he made a hasty retreat with his tail tucked between his legs that she glared over at the grinning red head. "Do you have to be such a prat?" Ginny yelped when Hermione stomped on her foot hard and shoved her away.

"He just asked you out right in front of me 'Mione!" Ginny glared back at Hermione. "Do you have an idea how that made me feel!? Do you even care!?"

"Ginevra Weasley." Hermione spoke through gritted teeth. "You lower your voice this instant." Her cheeks started to heat up when she noticed that Ginny's loud outburst had drawn the attention of a few Gryffindors.

"Trouble in paradise?" Ron laughed as he sat down next to Luna.

"Ronald can you please control your sister." Hermione grumbled.

"I can't be controlled Hermione! And I can't control how I feel about you." Ginny grabbed the brunette's hand, scooting closer to her. "I love you and it drives me crazy when I see the way people look at you."

"Okay, that's it." Hermione pried her hand out of Ginny's tight grasp and stood up. "You are the most ridiculous person I have ever met and you have sufficiently ruined my breakfast." Hermione grabbed her bag.

"Love you too sweetie!" Ginny yelled loud enough for the entire dining hall to hear as Hermione stomped away.

"She's going to kill you. You know that right?" Ron raised an eyebrow at his little sister. He may be considered the dumb one in the golden trio, but even he wasn't dumb or brave enough to piss Hermione Granger off. At least not on purpose.

"You think that was too much?" Ginny laughed.

"I think you did a great job Ginny." Luna smiled her dreamy smile at the red head. "You are a fantastic actress."

"Thank you Luna." Ginny smiled proudly. "It's nice to see someone appreciates my hard work and dedication."

Across the room Fleur narrowed her eyes at the Gryffindor table, taking in the whole scene that played out. The odds did seem unfairly stacked against her and that possessive red head girlfriend of hers was sure to be nothing but trouble. She took note of Hermione storming away and briefly played with the idea of going after her, but thought better of it. She turned her attention back to the Gryffindor table and something stood out to her that she hadn't noticed before. The blonde that was conversing with the two girls before wasn't wearing a Gryffindor robe, but was a Ravenclaw instead. _'Interesting . . . per'aps my situation isn't as 'opeless as I zought.'_

_**"What's going on in that head of yours?"**_ Odette smiled over at Fleur.

_**"She's scheming."**_ Veronique answered for the blonde as she took a bite of her toast.

_**"Oh? What are you planning?"**_ Odette scooted closer to her friend.

_**"Nothing."**_ Fleur dropped her fork and stood up from her seat when she saw Luna get up to leave.

_**'Good luck!'**_ Veronique called after her as she hurried to catch up to the Ravenclaw before she was out of sight.

Fleur watched as Luna disappeared into one of the bathrooms. _'Perfect.'_ She smiled to herself when she walked into the bathroom and saw there was no one there to interrupt them. She went to a sink and proceeded to check her makeup in the mirror, gently dabbing at any spots she believed to be imperfect, feigning disinterest when the blonde exited a stall.

"Hello." Luna smiled over at Fleur as she washed her hands.

"Bonjour." Fleur looked at the Ravenclaw out of the corner of her eye, trying to put on her best friendly smile.

"You're one of the Beauxbatons students right?" Luna turned off the sink and started drying her hands with a paper towel.

"Oui." Fleur smiled, turning her full attention to the blonde. "I'm Fleur Delacour. Pleasure to meet you."

"Luna Lovegood." Luna smiled and shook Fleur's outstretched hand.

"Luna Lovegood . . . zat name sound familiar." Fleur wracked her brain, trying to remember where she heard it until a light bulb flicked on in her head. "You 'elped defeat ze dark lord non?"

"That was mainly Harry, Hermione, and Ron. I played a small part." Luna scanned the room with a far off look in her eyes, stopping on the corner behind Fleur as if she saw something.

"Don't be so modest. Defeating ze dark lord at such a young age . . ." Fleur furrowed her brow in confusion when it seemed the blonde wasn't paying attention to her. ". . .no matter 'ow little your part iz no easy feat." Fleur looked over her shoulder off in the corner where Luna seemed to be paying great interest, but was baffled when she saw nothing. They stood in silence for a moment, it didn't seem as if the Ravenclaw was particularly chatty and if Fleur was being honest she didn't seem like she was completely there. _'Per'aps I chose ze wrong person to try to get information from.'_

"You wanted to ask me about Hermione right?" Fleur snapped her head back in the blonde's direction as Luna rocked back and forth on her heals, a dreamy look in her eyes.

"'Ermione?" Fleur feigned innocence.

"You've been watching her since you got here." Luna tilted her head to the side. She made the statement seem so casual; like it was common knowledge as she leaned on a sink.

"I 'ave no idea what you are talking about." Fleur put on her neutral face, trying to hide her embarrassment. _'Have I been that obvious?'_

"You like her." Again Fleur was baffled and completely thrown off by how casual and nonchalant Luna was acting.

"I-I don't like 'er. I-" Fleur started with a light blush.

"It's perfectly fine. You don't have to be embarrassed." Luna smiled. "Hermione is brilliant and has grown to become quite beautiful."

"Oui . . . she is,but -"

"It's quite a shame though." Luna pushed off the sink, heading for the door.

"What is?" Fleur turned around, following the peculiar Ravenclaw with her eyes.

"If you were sincere and your intentions were more honorable she might have liked you too." Luna shrugged before leaving a shell shocked veela in her wake.

/

Hermione let out a huff, blowing up to try to get some of her hair out of her face as she carefully walked down some stone steps with her arms full of books. She was only halfway through her day and she was thoroughly exhausted. She couldn't seem to catch a break. She had been asked out five times already and she couldn't help, but blame Ginny. _'It seems like Ginny's plan is having the exact opposite effect then what was intended. Now everyone seems to think it's open season on Hermione Granger.'_

"Hey honey. How has your day been so far?" Came one of the last voices Hermione wanted to hear at the moment.

"Horrible thanks to you." Hermione glared at Ginny out of the corner of her eye.

"Me?" Ginny pretended to look mortified as she fell in line with her friend. "What did I do?"

"Before everyone thought I was dating you they somewhat left me alone, but after your loud display in the dining hall this morning everyone seems to be emboldened."

"It's not my fault you're hot Hermione Granger." Ginny laughed.

"Sod off." Hermione grumbled.

"Awe come on, don't be like that." Ginny smiled. "Here, let me make it up to you. Let me carry your books and walk you to class." Ginny grabbed the books from Hermione's hands before she could protest. "It's the least I can do for my super awesome hot girlfriend." Ginny couldn't resist throwing a cheeky wink in the brunette's direction. One of her favorite past times was riling the golden girl up.

"You're laying it on a bit thick don't you think?" Hermione crossed her arms, trying to ignore the looks everyone was giving her and the red head.

"Well I have to if you want people to leave you alone. Apparently I didn't make it clear enough this morning that you're MINE Hermione Granger." Anyone that had been observing the pair quickly averted their gaze with a blush when Ginny professed her ownership of the bookworm quite loudly and sent them a dangerous glare.

"Stop doing that." Hermione ducked her head, trying to hide her own blush.

"Why? It worked." Ginny shrugged. "It's just too bad that veela wasn't here to hear it."

"Veela? What veela?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.

"Fleur Delacour of course."

"Fleur?" Hermione looked thoroughly confused. "She's not a veela."

"Uhh yeah she is. Why do you think all the boys fall over themselves and leave puddles of drool everywhere when she's around?" Ginny laughed.

"I just figured it's because she's . . . well you know." Hermione blushed and inwardly chided herself for almost giving the blonde a compliment.

"She's what?" Ginny raised an eyebrow at the blushing brunette.

"Nothing." Hermione glared at Ginny who looked like she was growing more amused by the second at the expense of her discomfort.

"Hermione Granger . . . you think she's hot!" Ginny grinned.

"No. I never said that." The golden girl had to ball her hands into tight fists, trying to push down her growing annoyance with her friend.

"But you thought it!"

"Come off it Gin!" Hermione growled, grabbing her books from the red head's hands forcefully before opening the door to her classroom. She stopped dead in her tracks in the doorway when she saw said topic of their conversation sitting in her Defense Against The Dark Arts classroom looking at her with curious eyes. Unfortunately for Hermione Ginny caught a glimpse of the blonde too and was very bad at controlling her impulses.

"Wait! 'Mione!" Ginny grabbed Hermione's shoulder and spun her around.

"What is it mmph!" Hermione's eyes practically bulged out of her head at the feeling of Ginny's lips pressed firmly against her own. She couldn't believe one of her closest friends was currently locking lips with her and in such a public place and . . . _'Is she trying to slip me tongue!?'_

Ginny pulled away with a grin, trying to suppress her laughter at the rage carefully hidden under the surface of Hermione's shellshocked face. Before Hermione could say anything Ginny spun her back around. "Kick some ass babe!" Hermione jumped a bit and nearly dropped her books when Ginny slapped her hard on the ass. She threw a wink in Fleur's direction and as she ran away she contemplated whose glare was deadlier. Hermoine's or Fleur's.

_'I am going to KILL Ginevra Weasley.'_ Hermione thought darkly to herself. She ducked her head, praying to God that her hair would cover her blushing face and hide her from the curious stares of her classmates.

"Figures you'd be dating another Weasley Granger!" Malfoy laughed with his trademark smirk firmly in place. "Are you trying to work your way through all of them?"

"Sod off Malfoy." Hermione grumbled, flipping the blonde off, making Malfoy and his goons laugh even more.

Fleur turned her glare from the door Ginny had just made her escape out of to the direction of the mouthy Slytherin. She felt something unfamiliar bubbling underneath the surface of her skin. It thrashed around inside of her, making her blood boil as she seethed in her seat, replaying the way the red head had kissed Hermione and how she handled her so roughly. The laughter coming from the Slytherins was just putting her more on edge and she had to stop herself from dropping her cool exterior and telling them to shut up.

"Alright class. Settle down." Luckily for Fleur the professor had decided to make his entrance and made the Slytherins quiet down before she could snap. "Miss Granger." Sirius smiled kindly at his god son's friend. "Would you be so kind as to take a seat?"

Hermione's face paled as she stood in the center of the isle and realized the only available seat left was the one next to the veela with the predatory stare. "Y-yes Professor. Sorry." She quickly took the seat up front next to the rigid blonde, pointedly looking away from her. _'Bloody brilliant.'_ She inwardly groaned.

"Now today, since we have some new students we are going to do a more hands on approach." Sirius walked back and forth in front of the students with his hands behind his back. "I want you to duel you partner and I will walk around the room and make my assessment to see where everyone is on the learning curve. Now, I don't want any deadly spells thrown about." He stopped, looking over to the Slytherin table where Draco was rolling his eyes. "I'm talking to you Malfoy." Draco glared at Sirius, crossing his arms, and slouching in his seat. "Anyone who seriously harms another student will be deducted points. Understood?" He raised an eyebrow and the entire class nodded their heads in unison. "Alright then." He clapped his hands together with a smile. "Let's get to it!"

Hermione had to try to repress an irritated sigh as she stood up from her seat and grabbed her wand while Sirius moved all the tables to the side of the room with a simple flick of his wrist.

"Let's get this over with shall we?" Hermione grumbled, going to stand toe to toe with Fleur, taking the appropriate stance before the start of a battle. The smell of vanilla and strawberries invaded her senses and for a moment Hermione almost faltered at the sweet scent coming off the blonde. Hermione had never been this close to the veela and couldn't help but to take a moment to really take in her features. To say Fleur Delacour was beautiful would be an understatement. The combination of her high cheekbones, the light tanning of her skin, the slight blush on her cheeks, her blue eyes that were almost silver, her full pink lips . . . _'Snap out of it Granger!'_ Hermione chided herself when she caught herself drifting off in thought. _'This girl is not to be trusted and her good looks are just a mere distraction from the person she really is.'_

"Don't worry chérie. I will be more gentle zan your girlfriend." Hermione bristled at the veela's remark as Fleur smiled at her, her blue eyes sparkling with what Hermione thought to be amusement, but was something else entirely.

"Are we going to duel or are you just going to make lewd remarks?" Hermione growled, gripping her wand tightly in her hand.

"I'm zorry." Hermione's glare wiped the smile from her face. She could hear Luna's voice that had been bothering her all day in the back of her head. ' _If you were sincere and your intentions were more honorable she might have liked you too.'_ "I was just-"

"Great. Let's duel." Hermione cut her off before she could say anything more and turned sharply on her heal.

Fleur let out a sigh and followed suit, walking a couple paces before she turned around to be met with that glare Hermione seemed to wear just for her.

"'Ermione . . . I didn't mean to-"

"Stupefy!" Hermoine yelled, throwing the curse quickly at the blonde who, to her surprise, deflected it almost effortlessly.

"I zink we got off on ze wrong foot." Fleur tried again. This setting wasn't ideal for her to try to talk to the book worm, but she supposed beggars couldn't be choosers.

"Oh? What makes you say that?" Hermione spat out sarcastically as she threw another spell at the blonde who once again deflected it with a simple flick of her wrist.

"Will you just stop for a se-" Fleur started to grow annoyed with the brunette when she almost hit her right in the face with a spell. She had to duck a little and cover her head with her arms to avoid the debris that came from the explosion behind her. "Merde!" Fleur straightened herself out. "Why do you 'ate me so much!?"

"I don't hate you." Hermione rolled her eyes, dropping her arm down. "I just have no interest in talking to you."

"Why?" Fleur glared back at the other girl.

"Because . . ." Hermione didn't know if she was especially testy today, because of Ginny, the constant stares, or maybe the blonde really just got under skin, but she decided to give Fleur a piece of her mind and unload everything onto the veela. "You're entitled." Hermione sent a chair flying at the blonde who quickly ducked, making it shatter against the wall behind her. "Rude." Fleur dodge rolled to the right to avoid another spell. "And arrogant." This time Hermione's spell made contact with the veela's chest and sent her flying onto her back.

Now Fleur liked to think that she was patient; like a spider waiting for the fly to entrap itself in its web, but something about Hermione Granger and the way she talked to her made her irate. So far she had been able to control herself, but something inside of her snapped when her back made contact with the cold stone of the ground. Fleur Delacour did a lot of things to get what she wanted, but making herself look like a fool was not one of them. She jumped up quickly, deciding she would no longer play defense against a girl who helped in the undoing of Lord Voldemort. She briefly chastised herself for not taking that into account in the first place and perhaps she should have been more serious about the duel to begin with.

"I'm arrogant!?" Fleur's knuckles turned white as she gripped her wand almost too tightly. Her eyes seemed to glow as she threw a curse in Hermione's direction, but the book worm dismissed it like she did the blonde with a flick of her wand. "You don't even know me!" Fleur sent a table flying at Hermione, but once again the Gryffindor's reflexes saved her as she sent the table flying off to the left of her instead. "You 'ear some rumors about me and instead of 'aving a conversation wiz me you jump to conclusions and dismiss me immédiatement." Fleur shot one spell after the other in rapid succession until one finally hit the shocked Gryffindor, sending her flying onto her back. "And you 'ave the nerve to call me arrogant." Fleur scoffed, crossing her arms and looking off to the side.

"Well so far you live up to your reputation." Hermione grumbled as she stood up on shaky legs, trying to regain her breath. She hated to admit it, but she was actually impressed that the blonde was able to knock her to the ground. It wasn't often that Hermione was properly challenged like this; she often grew bored in Defense Against Dark Arts when it came to duels.

"Excusez-moi?" Fleur snapped her head back in Hermione's direction.

"In our first conversation you insulted my article." Hermione threw a curse at Fleur haphazardly and as expected Fleur deflected it. "Then you went on to make fun of me to your friends."

"I wasn't-" Fleur ducked, dodging another hex.

"So don't you dare call me arrogant." Hermione growled, holding her wand up.

"'Zat was all a misunderstanding." Fleur stood up when she didn't see another hex flying her way.

"I'm sure." Hermione rolled her eyes before she threw another hex at Fleur, but the blonde threw one at the same time. Red and blue strands of light crackled as they met in the middle. The blue light pushed further towards Hermione as Fleur grit her teeth, putting more power behind her spell, but in a split second Hermione's red light pushed it back. They stood there battling for dominance, both refusing to step down no matter how tired they grew, until both their wands were suddenly whipped out of their hands.

"I think that is quite enough." Sirius twirled Hermione's wand between his fingers as the two girls stood there breathing heavily, eyes still locked. Hermione couldn't seem to tear her eyes away from the veela. She didn't know if maybe it was because she had a rough day and had so much pent up frustration, but dueling Fleur felt really . . . good. It was almost therapeutic. She didn't have to hold back. She was able to let loose and throw everything she had at the blonde and for the most part Fleur took it in stride which was a rarity for her. "I think it's fair to say you two are equally matched." He smiled as he handed Hermione back her wand. Hermione looked down, breaking eye contact with those light blue eyes that bothered her for reasons she was unsure of.

"Zank you." Fleur mumbled when he placed her wand back in her hand.

"But next time . . ." He looked over at Hermione with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Do try to avoid breaking my desks."

"S-sorry Professor." Hermione blushed.

"Je suis désolé." Fleur mumbled as she grabbed her bag. Sirius just laughed and shook his head before he dismissed the class.

As everyone poured out of the class Fleur couldn't help, but try to get one last word in with the Gryffindor. "You know . . . you are very skilled in combat." She glanced at the brunette out of the corner of her eye, but Hermione didn't seem to pay her any mind. "You should put your name in ze goblet."

"Yeah right." Hermione scoffed before she slung her bag over her shoulder, picked up her books, and briskly walked away before the blonde could try to say anything else to her.

/

"Hey 'Mione." Harry smiled when he saw his friend reading in the common room; as usual he paid no attention to the title written in gold 'A History Of Veelas'.

"Hey Harry." Hermione replied without looking up.

"Me and Harry are going to put our names in the goblet." Ron grinned, hurtling over the back of the couch to to sit next to the brunette. "You want to come?"

"Why would I possibly want to go do that?" Hermione raised an eyebrow as she turned a page.

"Moral support?" Ron shrugged.

"We're going down to dinner after anyway. Just thought you might want to come with." Harry rubbed the back of his head. He could tell Hermione had a rough day and thought maybe they could help get her out of her funk.

"I suppose I could go with." Hermione sighed, marking her page before she got up and stretched.

"Good. Let's go." Ron jumped up next to his friend. "I'm starving." And then as if on que his stomach grumbled.

"You and your stomach." Hermione rolled her eyes with a little smile. It was nice to know some things would never change, no matter how small or inconsequential.

"Wait for me!" Ginny smiled as she ran after the group departing from the common room.

"Don't wait for her." Hermione glared over her shoulder, closing the portrait before Ginny could get out.

"Everything alright?" Harry's brow raised at Hermione's actions.

"She snogged me." Hermione grumbled.

"She what!?" Ron's voice squeaked out.

"Don't be dramatic 'Mione. It was just a little smooch." Ginny caught up to the trio as they walked down the changing staircase.

"You tried to put your tongue in my mouth Ginevra Weasley!" Hermione turned around and pushed the now laughing red head.

"Come on. It was kind of funny." Ginny quickly regained her balance.

"You tried to put your tongue in 'Mione's mouth?" Ron looked beyond shocked.

"You're lucky she didn't bite it off." Harry laughed as they entered the room that held the goblet. There were a bunch of students lounging and talking, eager to see who was going to be brave enough to put their name in.

"'Mione wouldn't do that to me." Ginny smiled confidently.

"Don't be so sure of that." Hermione growled as she walked up the bleachers a bit and took a seat away from the other students and to her dismay Ginny took it upon herself to sit next to her on the edge of the bleachers while the boys went to write their names down. She briefly let her eyes wander around the room, they stopped their wandering when they landed on Viktor Krum looking at her with that same intense stare.

"He's an intense bloke eh?" Ginny raised an eyebrow at the dark haired seeker.

"Yeah." Hermione blushed, turning her attention to the goblet. Harry and Ron smiled at each other as they put their names in at the same time. The blue flame swallowed the pieces of paper and the crowd burst out into cheers. The boys stepped out of the circle and proceeded to talk to Seamus and Dean who she assumed were going to put their names in too.

The doors burst open as Viktor Krum slowly approached the goblet with his group of friends goading him on to put in his name. A small smile formed on his face as the fire ate up his name and once again he turned his head to lock eyes with the permanently blushing brunette.

"Here comes your mistress." Ginny whispered in Hermione's ear, pulling her attention away once more from Viktor.

"Shut up." Hermione sighed, her gaze turning to where Fleur glided in front of a group of Beauxbatons students. She had her head held up high and seemed to be on a mission to the goblet. Her lips were set in a straight line as she passed Krum and Hermione wasn't sure if she imagined it, but it seemed that the blonde purposely bumped shoulders with the seeker.

If anyone was watching close enough they would have also seen Viktor give the veela a menacing glare which she returned in kind. Fleur saw the way he watched Hermione, how he hovered around the girl like a vulture, but she was not his to claim. Once Fleur set her sights on someone or something it was hers and God save anyone who tried to get in her way.

It felt like they were stuck in that glare for a while, but in reality it was mere seconds. She held his gaze as long as she could as he passed, almost challenging him to say or do something, but just as quick as their quiet dispute started it ended and they both continued on their paths as if nothing happened.

With Viktor gone Fleur turned her attention to the brunette and the smirking red head sitting next to her. She bit her tongue to refrain from saying anything when the Weasley girl locked eyes with her and wrapped an arm around Hermione's shoulders giving her a pointed look. She watched as that same hand started to snake it's way to Hermione's chest and had to quickly snap her gaze away from the sight when her blood started to boil again. _'She's doing zis on purpose. She wants to get a rise out of me. Well I will not give 'er ze satisfaction.'_ Fleur stuck her nose up, but her attention was once more brought to the two girls when she heard a loud thump.

"Oi! 'Mione!" Ginny whined from the ground. It had seemed Hermione had had enough of her shenanigans. Before her hand could even make contact with her chest the brunette had shoved Ginny hard enough to send her flying off the end of the bleachers and onto the cold ground. "That bloody hurt!"

"Serves you right!" Hermione glared down over the edge of the bleachers at the disheveled red head on the floor.

"I was just-"

"You were just being a prat." Hermione stood up with a huff. "And if you try anything like that again I am going to write your mother Ginevra Weasley."

"You're kidding right?" Ginny sat up, her face now deathly pale. "'Mione please don't write my mum!" Ginny jumped up to her feat, chasing after the inwardly grinning book worm. It still amused her to no end that the best weapon to use against Ginny was a howler from Molly Weasley.

"Mum is going to be so upset when she hears how you treat 'Mione." Ron shook his head in mock disapproval while Harry tried to stifle his laughter. "Honestly, I thought she raised you better than that."

"Not you too!" Ginny grew paler by the second as the golden trio burst out in laughter and left for the great hall.

_**"If I didn't know any better I would think you're jealous Fleur."**_ Veronique raised an eyebrow at the Veela glaring at the now closed door the four students had just left out of.

**_"Don't be absurd."_** Fleur quickly corrected her mistake of letting her emotions show and put on her usual neutral face as she approached the goblet. Her eyes got lost in the blue flames that licked at her fingertips as it devoured the parchment she had carefully written her name onto. _'It seems I 'ave to step up my game.'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Couldn't resist posting another chapter ASAP :D Hope you guys liked it and Ginny's antics haha


	4. Save My Soul

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm baaack with another chapter :) I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who has jumped on this insane train or are re-reading this fic for the feels. I'm finding myself doing the same haha Anyways, my musical inspiration for this chapter is a song called Save My Soul by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy. I suggest giving it a listen if you are so inclined to do so :)  
> Oh and once more, friendly reminder, French is in bold and italics while thoughts are just in italics :)

Fleur let out an irritated sigh as she gracefully took a seat next to Veronique and Odette in the dining hall. Two weeks have gone by since her last conversation with Hermione Granger and frustratingly enough she was even further away from reaching her goal than when she started. It seemed as if she would take one step forward and two steps back when it came to the stubborn Gryffindor girl.

_**"Rough day?"**_ Veronique sent a smirk over at the brooding blonde.

_**"She won't talk to me. At all."**_ Fleur rubbed her face with her hands in an attempt to relieve some stress. After their little duel Hermione had made it even harder to talk to her. Every time she saw the Veela she would scurry off in the opposite direction. Even when they were both in the same class, she would make it a point to already have a partner, so she had no chance of sitting next to her. When Fleur said she wanted a challenge, this wasn't exactly what she had in mind. She assumed she would have to sweet talk the famous girl for a week or so and she would eventually cave in to her charms, however it seemed as if Hermione was immune to whatever she threw her way.

_**"I tried to warn you that she wouldn't fall for your usual tricks."**_ Veronique laughed, taking a sip of her pumpkin juice.

Gabrielle's took a seat at the table, sending a glare at her sister. _**"Are you seriously still bothering that poor Granger girl?"**_

Fleur returned Gabrielle's glare in kind, which earned her an eye roll from her little sister. _**"Are you seriously still eavesdropping on all of my conversations?"**_ When she saw that Gabrielle wasn't going to retaliate she turned her attention back to her friends. _**"I just don't understand why she isn't even slightly interested. She treats me like a leper."**_

_**"Probably, because she's a prude."**_ Veronique smirked.

_**"Actually . . ."**_ Gabrielle jumped back into the conversation, quickly gaining Fleur's attention. _'She must be really desperate if she is listening to anything I have to say.'_

Fleur raised an eyebrow, _**"Actually what?"**_ Was Hermione really interested in her?

_**"It's probably, because she's too good for you."** _

Fleur looked like she was about to explode as Gabrielle calmly took a sip of her soup. Her little sister always had to add salt to the wound and if she was down Gabrielle was always there to give her a firm kick to keep her there.

_**"Isn't there anyone else you can bother?"**_ The older Veela crossed her arms with a huff.

Gabrielle smiled cheekily before going back to her soup. _**"Nope."**_

_**"What approach have you tried?"**_ Odette leaned forward to see past Veronique to Fleur.

_**"**_ _ **I'm trying to be subtle**_ _ **. I tried being friendly with her in the library,**_ _ **but**_ _ **you both know how that ended. I tried talking to her a second time in class and she almost blew my head off."**_ Fleur grumbled.

_**"Serves you right."**_ Garbrielle mumbled, earning herself a kick in the shin from her sister.

_**"That doesn't seem like her. She's such a nice girl."**_ Odette's statement effectively grabbed Fleur's and Veronique's full attention. Gabrielle almost choked on her soup at the shocked expression on the two girls faces.

Fleur glanced over to the Gryffindor table, throwing a betrayed glare in the brunette's direction. _**"You've talked to her?"**_ Hermione wouldn't so much as look in her direction, but she would talk to Odette?

_**"A little."**_ Odette seemed to shrink in her seat. Being part of the Veela tribe made Fleur her alpha and the last thing she wanted to do was piss her off. She knew how Fleur got when it came to her "conquests" and she definitely didn't want to be the Veela that got in the way of what she wanted.

Fleur grit her teeth in frustration _**"And you didn't tell me?"**_

_**"I thought you didn't want in on the bet."**_ Veronique's eyes filled with mirth at the apprehensive look on Odette's face. _**"Looks like Odette is going to steal your prize Fleur."**_ The dark-haired girl egged on the already irritated Veela.

_**"I-it's not like that."**_ Odette held up her hands defensively. She could tell Fleur was growing more irritated by the second and Veronique was not helping at all as usual. The raven haired girl was a master at pushing their friend over the edge and seemed to almost take joy in Fleur losing her temper.

_**"Oh? It's not?"**_ Fleur glared at her friend. _**"Then why didn't you tell me until now?"**_

_**"I thought it would be best if I didn't interfere and I didn't think it was a big deal."**_ The red head started to sweat under Fleur's critical glare. _**"She just helped me with my potions homework. Honest."**_

_**"What exactly happened?"**_ Fleur leaned forward in an almost threatening manor.

_**"It was last week . . ."** _

/

Odette let out an irritated huff as she slammed her potions book shut. _**"Fuck this."**_ Potions had always been difficult for her but learning it in English was making the subject seem impossible. She had been in the library leaning over that damned potions book for hours and she wasn't even slightly close to finishing her essay. Usually Fleur would help her with her homework, but she seemed to be too preoccupied trying to gain Hermione Granger's affection to help her. She was about to give up and call it a night when a voice interrupted her small rampage.

_**"I'm guessing potions isn't your best subject."**_ Hermione smiled briefly as she took a seat next to the red head. She had walked in an hour ago and recognized the girl as one of Fleur's friends. She half expected the foreigner to get up and pester her, but Hermione didn't seem to be on her radar; she was too engrossed and thoroughly perplexed by her potions book. She could tell the French girl was struggling and she just seemed to get more upset by the minute. It was a pitiful sight and Hermione felt bad enough that she felt compelled to get up and offer the poor girl some help.

Switching to Hermione's native tongue, though she still struggled with it, Odette replied sullenly, "Non, it iz not."

"Do you want some help?"

"Zat would be nice . . ." Odette looked down and blushed. Not being the brightest witch wasn't something she was particularly proud of and constantly needing Fleur's help made her feel like a burden. "But you don't 'ave to. I don't want to be a bozer."

Hermione felt her heart sink at the downtrodden look in the witch's blue eyes; it was obvious this was something she struggled with quite often. "Don't be ridiculous." Hermione waved off the red head's concern and smiled in a way that she hoped was reassuring as she grabbed Odette's potion book and opened it up. "I'm happy to help."

"Where's this can do attitude when I ask for help 'Mione?" Ron whined from the table Hermione had abandoned him at.

"You don't ask for my help Ronald." Hermione glared over her shoulder, clearly annoyed by his loud intrusion. "You just copy my work."

"She's got a point." Harry chimed in with a cheeky grin.

Ron's ears turned a bright red when Odette laughed at his expense. "Shut up mate!"

Hermione refrained from rolling her eyes at her friends who liked to butt in to all of her conversations and turned her attention back to the giggling red head. "I'm Hermione by the way." She held out her hand.

"Odette." The bright-eyed witch gratefully shook Hermione's hand.

"Pleasure to meet you." The brunette's smile returned in full force. "Now what are you struggling with?" She released Odette's hand and returned her attention to the task at hand.

"'Onestly . . . everyzing . . ." Odette grumbled; her mood dropped almost instantly when she turned her attention back to her textbook. "Eet iz incredibly 'ard translating ze text."

"Oh, well I can definitely help you with that."

For the next hour Hermione spent her time helping translate the text for the French witch and in that time Odette came to realize Hermione Granger really was an exceptional witch. She had absolutely no problem translating and explaining things to the red head in a way that made it easy for her to understand. By the end of their study session she felt like she might actually be able to get a decent grade on a potions essay for once and her mood had been sufficiently lifted.

"Zank you so much for your 'elp 'Ermione." Odette smiled as they packed up their things. "Usually Fleur 'elps me. She's top of our class, but . . ." Her blue eyes widened when she realized she mentioned the taboo subject of Fleur Delacour. She had been purposely avoiding bringing up the blonde for the simple fact that she did not want Hermione to leave her to figure out her homework on her own. "I'm zorry, I-"

"It's perfectly fine Odette." Hermione gave the red head a reassuring smile. "But . . ." Hermione chewed on her lip, seeming to ponder how to tackle the predicament she was in. "Will you just do one little favor for me?"

"Oui, of course. Anyzing." Odette stood up, slinging her book bag over her shoulder.

"Don't tell her we talked please." Hermoine sighed. "She's been a real pain." She really hoped she wouldn't regret her decision to help Odette. She had successfully avoided the blonde for two weeks and didn't need Fleur to feel emboldened by an act of kindness to her friend.

"Absolument." Odette smiled and nodded her head.

/

Odette ducked her head, trying to hide her face when Fleur continued to glare at her even after her story was over. For obvious reasons she left out the part where Hermione had asked her not to tell Fleur and she had agreed. She felt bad for not only breaking her promise to Hermione, but for also keeping things from her friend. She had been put in quite the predicament due to her horrible habit of letting things slip out.

_**"That was smooth."**_ Veronique grinned. _**"I'm impressed. I didn't know you had it in you Odette."**_ She clapped the grimacing red head on the back. " _ **I guess Granger really does have a thing for red heads."**_

_**"Nothing happened."**_ Odette mumbled. _**"She really just helped me with my homework . . . We haven't talked since."**_ Fleur sat there glaring at the red head, gripping her fork tightly in her hand, looking like she was about to snap at any moment. _**"I-"**_

_**"Don't."**_ Fleur slammed her fork down onto the table, startling the already nervous red head and stood up, putting her nose in the air.

_**"I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to-"**_ Odette started again, but Fleur just turned her back on her friends and stormed out of the great hall.

_**"Don't worry. She won't stay mad for long. I'll go take care of it."**_ Veronique stood up with a reassuring smile that wasn't so reassuring to Odette seeing as the dark haired girl was the one who had been provoking Fleur throughout the entire conversation. _**"Fleur! Wait up!"**_ Veronique picked up her pace to catch up to the fuming blonde heading for their carriage.

_**"Leave me alone."**_ Fleur growled as she stormed into the carriage and stomped down the halls to her room.

She tried to close the door before Veronique could pester her further, but the dark haired girl proved to be persistent and fast. _**"Why are you so bent out of shape about this?"**_

Fleur laid down on her bed with a huff when she realized she wasn't going to get the solitude she craved. _**"I'm not."**_ She crossed her arms under head as she glared up at the ceiling.

_**"Oh you definitely are."**_ Veronique jumped onto the bed, laying next to her friend. _**"You go into a jealous rage any time anyone goes anywhere near that prude."**_

_**"I'm not jealous."**_ Fleur grumbled quietly.

_**"Bullshit."**_ Veronique turned to lay on her side so she could look at the Veela. _**"You were two seconds away from mauling Krum when you put your name in the goblet and are constantly glaring at Hermione's girlfriend."**_

_**"I mean it. I'm not jealous."**_ Fleur chewed on her lip before she let out a sigh. _**"The Veela is though . . ."**_

_**"The Veela is jealous?"**_ The dark haired girl raised an eyebrow. _**"That doesn't make any sense. You're not jealous, but the Veela in you is?"**_

_**"It's, because I haven't claimed her yet and the Veela sees her as mine already."** _

_**"But you've never gotten jealous over me."**_ Veronique pouted.

**"That's, because I have already claimed you.** _**Many times."**_ Fleur rolled her eyes. _ **"The Veela is growing restless and wants to take her. This happens every now and then when a conquest takes longer than expected."**_

_**"Well perhaps . . ."**_ A devious smile formed on Veronique's lips as she moved to straddle Fleur's hips. She placed her hands next to the blonde's head, leant forward, and brought her lips incredibly close to Fleur's. _**"You can claim me again and it will satiate your thirst."**_

_**"That sounds tempting . . ."**_ Fleur ran her hands up the back of Veronique's thighs before they settled on her firm butt and she sat up. _**"But not tonight."**_ She lifted up her friend and put her back onto her side of the bed before she got up.

_**"But we haven't had sex since we got here!"**_ Veronique whined like a petulant child.

Fleur had to refrain from visibly flinching at her friend's whiney tone; it was like nails on a chalkboard to the Veela. _**"I told you I want to be alone."**_

_**"Seriously?"**_ Veronique crossed her arms, obviously irritated by Fleur's sudden disinterest in her.

**"Seriously."** Fleur sighed as she sat down at her desk and pulled out her journal.

_**"Fine."**_ Veronique huffed as she stood up and stormed towards her exit. _**"But don't try to crawl into my bed when you change your mind."**_ She glared over her shoulder, standing in the doorway with her hand on the doorknob. She was hoping her outburst would elicit some sort of response from the blonde, but all she received was silence as Fleur started writing or drawing, it was always hard to tell with her, in her journal. She let out one last huff when she saw Fleur's response to her statement, or lack there of, as she opened the door and slammed it loudly behind her, hoping to disturb the blonde who obviously had more important things on her mind than having sex with her.

/

The next day in potions class Fleur found herself once again glaring at the back of Hermione's head while pointedly ignoring Veronique's own dirty looks being shot in her direction. Occasionally she would shift her heated look over to Odette who would quickly avert her eyes away from her clearly displeased alpha.

Fleur rested her chin on the palm of her hand while her fingers on the other one tapped impatiently on the desk. It seemed the golden girl preferred just about everyone else compared to her and she didn't know how to fix the problem. She ran through her conversation with Odette over and over again in her head until a thought suddenly struck her. Her fingers stopped tapping and she almost immediately perked up with a sly grin on her face. _'I zink I found my way in. Eet iz so obvious. I am surprised I didn't zink of eet sooner.'_

Fleur felt the Veela inside her calm a bit when it realized she was going to make another move on its prey and could almost hear it let out a sigh of relief when the bell rung, signaling the end of the dreadfully boring class. She quickly stood up, carelessly stuffing her books into her bag before she made it over to Hermione packing up her own things.

"Do you reckon you might want to hang out with me and Ron tonight?" She overheard Harry ask the brunette.

"I can't." Hermione sighed. "I have prefect duties tonight. The halls aren't going to patrol themselves." Fleur felt her Veela jump with glee when she realized the golden girl wasn't going to be surrounded by her posse tonight.

"'Ermione." Fleur put on her best smile, trying to ignore the way Hermione quietly groaned to herself when she heard Fleur's voice.

"What is it?" Hermione asked while knelt down, putting her books away. Fleur stumbled on what she wanted to say for a moment when she caught a glimpse of the "A History Of Veela" book slightly poking out of her bag. She decided not to mention it and to store it in her mind for later use; it was an interesting discovery to say the least.

"I was wondering eef you could per'aps 'elp me with some 'omework." Fleur did her best to come off as nervous and innocent. "I 'ave a difficult time grasping some of ze lessons given in english."

Fleur had to stop herself from getting angry when she heard Hermione laugh as she slung her book bag over her shoulder. "Really?"

"Oui." Fleur nodded her head, keeping her same innocent exterior while Harry raised a curious eyebrow at the seemingly amused bookworm. Hermione wasn't one to turn down a student when they asked for her help with some homework, but he supposed she and Fleur had a little bit more of a complicated relationship.

Hermione rolled her eyes as she walked past the blonde who was now hot on her heels. "I find it hard to believe you need my help."

"Why do you say zat?" Fleur struggled to keep up with the brunette as they exited the class. She was so confused by Hermione's actions that she almost ran into her when she came to an abrupt stop and turned on her heels.

"Because I know you're top of your class and tutor other students." Hermione's stare seemed to go right through the shocked blonde. "But nice try." And there was that fake smile again that Fleur had grown to despise.

"Everything alright love?" Came a voice that set Fleur's teeth on edge almost immediately.

"I'm fine Gin." Hermione grumbled at the red head before she headed off.

Fleur turned to go in the opposite direction, inwardly cursing her never ending bad luck with the golden girl when red hair and green eyes invaded her vision.

"I don't think we've been properly introduced." Ginny smiled a smile that was almost as fake as Hermione's. "I'm Ginny Weasley." Ginny held out her hand for Fleur to shake. "Hermoine's girlfriend."

The Veela looked down at her hand with barely veiled disgust, but for appearances she gingerly grabbed the girl's outstretched hand. "I'm-"

"Oh, I already know who you are." Ginny kept that same smile on her face, but there was a dangerous glint in her green eyes now. "You're Fleur Delacour. The girl trying to steal my girlfriend."

"I 'ave no idea what you're talking about." Fleur narrowed her eyes as Ginny's grip tightened and pulled her in closer.

"Listen, because I'm only going to say this once Delacour." Ginny lowered her voice, her smile dropping. "If you come anywhere near Hermione Granger again I will break that pretty little face of yours. Got it?" Fleur's clenched her jaw tightly as the Veela inside of her started to thrash around; she could feel her anger starting to bubble up and it was about to reach the surface. "Alright love" Ginny's fake smile reappeared as she let go of the blonde's hand. "It was nice meeting you." She hit Fleur on the shoulder a little too hard for it to be considered friendly before she walked away with a smug smile on her face.

_'I am going to kill zat girl.'_ Fleur thought darkly to herself as she watched Ginny's retreating form. _'After I fuck her girlfriend senseless of course.'_ Fleur had been on the fence about pursuing Hermione tonight, but Ginny Weasley had successfully sealed the golden girl's fate. No one told Fleur Delacour what to do and they sure as hell didn't threaten her. Come tomorrow, Ginny Weasley was going to be sorry she ever crossed Fleur Delacour.

_/_

_**"Hey Fleur."**_ Odette put on her best smile when the blonde made her appearance at dinner while Veronique continued to pointedly ignore the Veela.

_**"What are you doing here? I thought you would be sitting at the Gryffindor table with Hermione."**_ Fleur shot her another glare.

Odette let out a soft sigh. _**"Come on, you know it's not like that Fleur."**_

_**"Why don't you lay off Odette."**_ Gabrielle glared at the fuming blonde whose mood seemed to get worse every day. _**"It's not her fault Hermione doesn't like you."**_

_**"Stay out of it Gabrielle."**_ Fleur dismissed the younger Delacour, putting her nose in the air.

Odette moved to sit next to her alpha. _**"I'm sorry Fleur. I really didn't mean any harm."**_

_**"I suppose you don't need my help with your homework anymore now that you have Hermione Granger tutoring you."**_ Fleur held on to her anger like a dog with a bone.

_**"Don't say that. You know I wouldn't have made it this far in school if it wasn't for you."**_ Odette frowned. _**"I didn't mean to betray you in any way."**_

_**"I know."**_ Fleur finally relented as she let out a sigh. Odette looked like a kicked puppy and no matter how much her Veela disagreed with her she couldn't stay mad at her friend. Odette was definitely the innocent one in the group and if it had been Veronique who had an encounter Hermione she was sure it would not have been an accident, but Odette really was harmless. _**"I'm sorry. My Veela has been on edge the last couple days."**_

_**"Why is your Veela on edge?"**_ Odette tilted her head to the side curiously.

_**"Because she needs to get laid."**_ Veronique scoffed.

_**"Don't project your problems onto me."**_ Fleur gave the dark haired girl a pointed look before turning her attention back to the red head. _**"It's just restless. It wants Hermione Granger and she is being incredibly difficult."**_

_**"Why don't you just tell your veela it's never going to happen, because she is out of your league."**_ Gabrielle smiled.

Fleur opened her mouth to berate her cheeky little sister when the loud voice of Dumbledore stopped all conversation in the great hall. He had effectively grabbed everyone's attention when he revealed the goblet. Fleur had been so busy sulking over Hermione Granger that she had completely forgotten about the Triwizard Tournament and that the champions would be revealed tonight. She was suddenly on edge, sitting up straighter, and bouncing her leg under the table impatiently as Dumbledore droned on for what she felt like was forever. _'Just reveal who ze champions are old man.'_

"The champion from Durmstrang is . . ."The fire burned bright as a piece of paper flew out into his hand. "Viktor Krum!" The great hall burst out in applause as the seeker stood up with a smirk on his face and headed to the chamber of champions. Fleur couldn't help, but roll her eyes. _'Of course zat idiot is ze champion for zat 'orrid school.'_

"The champion from Beauxbatons is . . ." Fleur suddenly snapped her head back to the headmaster, her heart pounding in her chest as the flame burned a brighter blue and shot the paper into Dumbledore's hand. Odette gave Fleur a reassuring smile, placing her hand on Fleur's arm to try to soothe her friend. "Fleur Delacour!"

The blonde felt her Veela jump for joy as the hall once more filled with applause and this time some wolf whistles too. She ignored them as she walked down the isle, shooting a glance over in Hermione's direction to see if she was impressed, but all she received was an eye roll from the brunette. She tried not to let it hurt her pride as she held her head up higher and walked into the chamber; she wasn't going to let Hermione Granger ruin her moment of glory.

When she walked into the chamber of champions she was immediately enveloped by an awkward silence. Viktor regarded her for all of a second before he turned around, seeming to find the fire more interesting than the Veela. She glared at the seekers back for a moment before pretending to take interest in the paintings on the wall when the door opened to reveal Harry Potter and all three headmasters from the schools followed by an older blonde woman with glasses. Fleur immediately disliked the woman; the way she looked at the trio, like she was going to unravel all of their deepest darkest secrets made her feel uneasy.

"Hello, I'm Rita Skeeter." The blonde smiled behind ruby red lipstick. "I write for the Daily Prophet, but of course you already know that." Fleur had to stop herself from rolling her eyes at how pretentious she was. "It seems we have quite the line up for the Triwizard Tournament." She stalked toward the group. "Viktor Krum . . . star player of the Bulgarian National Quididitch team. Fleur Delacour . . . future matriarch and heiress to the Delacour clan and Harry Potter . . . the savior of the wizarding world. What mysteries do the muscles mask? " She ran her hand down Viktor's arm, making the boy almost shudder. "What quirks lurk beneath those rosy cheeks?" Fleur had to suppress a growl when she pinched her cheek and lightly slapped it before heading over to Harry. "Does courage lie beneath those curls?" She ran her hand through Harry's hair. "In short, what makes a champion tick?" She smiled her greasy smile at the now irate group. "Me, myself, and my audience are dying to know, but first!" She pushed Fleur to sit in a chair. "Smile for the camera." The group barely had time to register the device in their face before a bright flash blinded them.

"Is zis necessary?" Fleur grumbled as she went to stand up. She had more important things to do than sit and listen to this insufferable woman drone on.

"Oh, but of course." Rita smiled her greasy smile and Fleur had to refrain from strangling the woman when she grabbed her by the hand. "Now for the interview. Ladies first." She pulled the seething Veela behind her to a separate room.

_'Eet iz going to be a long night.'_ Fleur inwardly grumbled to herself.

/

Hermione sighed and tried to rub the sleep from her eyes as she patrolled the halls of Hogwarts; it had been a long couple of weeks. She had to remain vigilant to avoid the Veela that seemed hell bent on gaining her attention. In what little free time she had she had been reading up on Veelas and had found plenty of useful information. The most useful thing she read was the chapter about thrall. A Veela could simply emit pheromones and have someone putty in their hands; they could essentially make someone their sex slave if they so wished it which is what led Hermione to really keep her distance from Fleur. She had no idea what the girl was capable of and had zero interest in becoming her plaything. Perhaps she was being a bit brash and overly cautious, but after everything Hermione had gone through she had learned the worst thing you could do is underestimate someone.

"Excuse me." Came a soft voice from behind the brunette deep in thought.

"Yes?" Hermione turned around to see a dark haired boy with light green eyes that stood a couple inches taller than her. She recognized him as a fifth year Gryffindor; she believed his name was Greg or something of the sort.

"I uh . . ." He stumbled over his words under her scrutinizing gaze.

"Is there a reason why you're out roaming about when it's almost curfew?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, I was just heading to the tower." He smiled reassuringly at the golden girl. "I was just passing by the prefects bathroom and heard loud music coming from there. I figured you would want to look out for another prefect and tell them to keep it down before a professor walks by and they get in trouble." He rubbed the back of his head.

"Oh." Hermione's brow rose in surprise. None of the prefects were known for breaking rules like that and none of them seemed savvy enough to figure out how to play music in Hogwarts. "That's nice of you. I'll go tell them right now." She plastered on a smile, trying to stuff down her irritation as he passed her and went up to the Gryffindor tower, but the second he was out of sight her smile dropped. _'Honestly . . . what idiot is blasting music in the prefects bathroom and at this time of night? They know better than that.'_ She clenched her fist as she stomped down the hallways.

Once she reached the door of the prefects bathroom she had to refrain from rolling her eyes at how loud the music was; she could hear it for a good minute before she reached her destination.

With an irritated sigh she opened the door and steamed rolled out almost immediately while the jazzy sound of the song washed over her. She closed the door behind her and walked forward trying to see through the steam that was slowly clearing, but stopped dead in her tracks at the sight before her.

**I walk the street's of New Orleans**  
**With the girl of my dreams**  
**I've seen old men drunk, singin' the blues**  
**With top hats', canes and spectator shoes**  
**I consider myself lucky to have fallen in love**  
**With a girl, a city and the river of mud**

Hermione wasn't one to stare, but even she couldn't stop herself from marveling at the sight of a very naked Fleur Delacour. Her eyes slowly traveled up the blonde's impossibly long toned legs and lingered on her shapely butt; two cute little dimples on her lower back held her attention there for far longer than she cared to admit. _'Bloody hell . . . Ten points to Fleur Delacour . . .'_ She licked her lips to try to alleviate her suddenly dry mouth as she watched the muscles in Fleur's back and shoulders move under her flawless skin while she dried her hair with a towel.

**Let me know**  
**Let me know**  
**Where I can go to save my soul**  
**Let me know**  
**Let me know**  
**Where I can go to save my soul**  
**Let me know**  
**Let me know**  
**Where I can go to save my soul**  
**Where I can go to save my soul**  
**New Orleans**

She stood there almost as if she was in a trance with her mouth slightly hanging open and a light blush on her cheeks when Fleur looked at her over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow, snapping her out of her stupor. She turned an even brighter shade of red when she realized she had been caught staring and was still doing so and . . . _'When did the bloody music turn off!?'_

"Do you zink you could turn around zo I can get dressed?" Fleur's smooth voice filled the silence and if it was possible Hermione turned an even deeper shade of red.

"Y-Yeah. Sorry." Hermione inwardly cursed herself as she quickly turned around; she was sure she looked exactly like Ron whenever the Veela walked by. "What are you doing in the prefects bathroom?" Hermione seemed to suddenly regain her senses and remember why she was there in the first place.

"I wanted to take a bath." Fleur acted as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I figured as much." Hermione rolled her eyes, glaring at the tile in front of her. "But I'm sure the Beauxbatons carriage has a bath there."

"I wanted ze full 'Ogwarts experience." Fleur spoke into the brunette's ear, making her jump; she definitely didn't expect Fleur to be so close. "'Ermione Granger . . . are you nervous?" She grinned at how fidgety the book worm was being. _'Eet seems my plan is working.'_

"Don't be ridiculous." Hermione spun around to glare at the blonde, but her cheeks heated up once more when she saw Fleur was sporting a light blue lacy bra with matching underwear that didn't leave much to the imagination. Her clear skin subtly glistened with whatever little bit of moisture was left over from her bath, making the normally beautiful blonde seem even more divine than usual. "Will you please put something on!?" She desperately tried to keep her eyes trained on the blonde's face, but couldn't stop her eyes from drifting down to Fleur's cleavage. Her gaze dropped even lower when a stray drop of water caught the bookworm's attention as it slid down the blonde's tight stomach over carefully concealed abs.

"Eef I didn't know any better . . ." Fleur stepped forward and Hermione took a step back only to feel the cold tile press against her back, leaving her trapped and at Fleur's mercy. "I would zink . . ." The blonde placed her hand next to golden girl's head as she leaned in close, locking eyes with uncertain brown and gold ones. "Zat you're checking me out 'Ermione Granger."

"You wish." Hermione narrowed her eyes, trying to summon some Gryffindor courage, but Fleur's blue eyes were sparkling with something she had never seen so closely before; pure unadulterated desire.

Fleur bit her lower lip, looking at Hermione as if she was about to devour her as she leant her head in a little closer. "Per'aps I do." She whispered.

Hermione had to stop her eyes from fluttering closed at the feeling of Fleur's breath lightly tickling her skin as her senses were once more invaded by the scent of strawberry and vanilla. Her attention dropped from Fleur's hypnotizing eyes to her full pink lips that quirked into a little smile when she noticed Hermione's wavering resolve.

_'Is she using her thrall on me . . .?'_ Hermione questioned herself as her eyes drifted further down to a lone freckle that sat just below the blonde's collar bone. Usually something like that would seem out of place, but Hermione found it entirely charming and was having a hard time not caving into the blonde's desires.

"'Ermione . . ." Fleur placed her finger under the brunette's chin, gently lifting it to bring the golden girl's attention back to her face, but faltered for a moment when she took in Hermione Granger's appearance; she had never been close enough to appreciate her high cheek bones or the small freckles barely visibly under her flushed cheeks. She had to remind herself to breathe when she noticed Hermione's amber eyes that were usually filled with nothing but hate for the blonde were glossed over and filled with something else entirely. Her normally well kept hair was disheveled and pressed against the tile and honestly, it was one of the sexiest things Fleur had ever seen. _''Ow can someone so infuriating be zo perfect?'_

_'She totally is using her thrall on me isn't she!?'_.

"Tu me veux?" Fleur asked breathlessly as her icy blue eyes flickered down to Hermione's cherry lips that she was willing to bet tasted as good as they looked. She was starting to find it extremely difficult to keep herself in check when all she could hear was Hermione's labored breathing and all she could smell was the intoxicating scent of lavender and jasmine.

"Honestly . . ." Hermione licked her lips and Fleur's eyes seemed to almost start glowing a neon blue from the small action. Fleur could feel her heart pounding uncontrollably in her chest as Hermione leant forward so their lips were almost touching. She felt her own eyelids start to flutter closed; she was so close to getting what she wanted she could taste it. "I feel bad for you." Fleur's eyes snapped open and her brow creased in confusion at Hermione's sudden change of tone and demeanor.

"Quelle . . .?" Fleur stood frozen, unsure of what was going on.

"It seems to me like you measure your self worth by who you can get between your thighs and honestly I feel bad for you. Is this really all there is to you?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the shocked girl. "Did you really think that I would give in to something so base?"

"I-"

"Did you really think I would fall for something so stupid!?" Hermione's voice started rising with her temper as she pushed the blonde away from her.

Fleur held up her hands defensively as the golden girl zeroed in on her. "'Ermione, I was just-"

"Do you really think you're the first person to try to seduce me? To try to use me to further your social status or parade me around like I'm some kind of trophy?" Hermione clenched her fists tightly. "People like you are the absolute worst. All you care about is yourself and everyone else is just an accessory to be used for whatever you like. You act like you're better than everyone, but the truth is you're miserable." She pushed Fleur by the shoulders. "Hollow." She shoved the blonde a little harder. "And completely fucked up!" She saved her hardest shove for last, pushing the Veela roughly against the wall.

Fleur just stood there completely dumbfounded; it would have hurt a lot less if Hermione had just hexed her instead of verbally tearing her down.

"You have absolutely nothing to offer anyone except your body and no matter how many people you "conquer" and destroy it will never fill the void in that tar pit you call a soul." Hermione seemed to have finally snapped like a tightly wound rubber band. "And how dare you try to use your thrall on me!"

"M-my zrall?" Fleur finally found the courage to speak after that verbal tirade. "I didn't use my zrall on you. I would never do somezing like zat."

"Bullshit." Hermione was now clenching her fists so tight she almost drew blood as her eyes just about burned a hole into Fleur's confused blue ones. "I wouldn't put anything past you at this point."

Fleur felt her anger flare up at Hermione's accusation. "I mean it!"

"Whatever." Hermione rolled her eyes as she turned away to leave.

"'Ermione!" Fleur took a step forward as the Veela in her threatened to take over, but faltered when Hermione paused in her steps and looked over her shoulder at her with more contempt than Fleur thought was humanly possible.

"Stay the fuck away from me." Hermione spat out before she stormed out of the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.

All Fleur could do was look at the door, her chest heaving as everything the brunette said to her started to sink in. "Merde!" She knocked over a rack of towels before stomping over to her clothes and throwing them on. She stormed down the hallways and out onto the grounds, making as much noise as she wanted, not caring if she got caught by a teacher.

When she reached the carriage she went straight to a familiar room and pounded on the door until Veronique opened it with sleep and confusion swimming in her green eyes. No words were exchanged between the two as Fleur leant forward and captured the raven haired girls lips in a rough kiss.

Veronique made no attempt to fight off the worked up Veela as Fleur pushed her back into her room and closed the door behind them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yesssss, get her Hermione! Sorry, I still can't help but be that girl in the background yelling "get her girl!" lmao Anyways, I would love to hear your guys' thoughts on the chapter :)  
> Oh! And here are the translations for the little bit of French I used in the chapter
> 
> Tu me veux? - Do You want me?
> 
> Quelle? - What?


	5. Using You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back with more :D I meant to post this last night, but unfortunately got caught up in important business *cough* Call of Duty *cough* haha Thank you to everyone who has commented, left a kudos, bookmarked, or jumped on this crazy train I call Cruel Intentions lol  
> The song that somewhat inspired this chapter is Using You by Mars Argo. It doesn't really go with the theme of the chapter at all, but it was great to listen to while writing the second half of the chapter :) Anyways, onto the newest installment! I hope you guys enjoy it :)  
> Oh and here's your friendly reminder that French is in bold and italics while thoughts are just in italics :)

It had been a little over a week since Hermione's last run in with Fleur Delacour and her harsh words seemed to keep the Veela at bay; that and whatever training Hermione assumed she was doing for the first task of the Triwizard tournament. One would think that that would make the bookworm happy, but she couldn't help but feel a pang a guilt when their eyes would lock and Fleur would look away dejectedly. It seemed that her words cut the blonde deeper than she thought. Hermione was never one to shy away from knocking someone down a few pegs when deserved, but she wasn't trying to break Fleur's spirit; she just wanted to be left alone.

_'Mission accomplished I guess.'_ Hermione thought to herself as she looked over her shoulder in potions class to see Fleur furiously scribbling down notes. Part of her wanted to apologize, but her pride refused to allow it when the Veela was completely out of line for playing such a dirty trick on her.

It was true Fleur was not the first person to try to seduce her to try to further their social status or to keep her as arm candy to impress their peers. She chewed on the end of her quill as she thought back to last year when Pansy Parkinson tried something similar. The raven-haired girl had been getting flirty with Hermione, sending her cute notes in class, and following her like a shadow. Hermione found it kind of endearing and even played with the idea of giving the Slytherin a chance, but one day she stumbled on some Slytherins talking with Pansy about her plans to further her social status by dating Hermione Granger and all bets were off. That was the first time she felt the sharp sting of betrayal and disappointment so acutely. She thought Pansy genuinely liked her; the elevation of Pansy's social status by just being associated with her hadn't even crossed her mind, but the repercussions of her newly acquired fame was still foreign to her at the time.

Thoroughly wounded, Hermione started ignoring her notes, ditching her whenever she could, and even took to eating lunch and dinner at times when she thought Pansy wouldn't be there, but the conniving girl was persistent. Imagine her surprise when she went up to her room to find Pansy Parkinson laying completely naked in her bed with what she assumed was a supposed to be a come-hither look. Hermione was so mortified she ended up hexing the cocky Slytherin; needless to say . . . they don't really talk anymore.

Then there was Roger Davies who was one of the many boys who tried to bed her. He would always approach her with a grin that was almost as greasy as his slicked back hair and say something like "Wow, when I said "Accio hottie", I didn't expect it to work!" or "Together we could really make the 'Shrieking Shack' worthy of its name."

Hermione almost cringed at the thought of Roger Davies and the others that were so forward, but . . . she didn't cringe when she thought back on Fleur. As upset as she was she couldn't stop her thoughts from straying every now and then to that night with the Veela, she found herself thinking about those captivating blue orbs and how they looked at her. It happened in the blink of an eye, but she knew she saw those arctic eyes glow a light neon blue and even though she had been surrounded by magic since she was eleven she had never seen anything more enchanting. Fleur didn't look at her the way Roger Davies or any of those other people did. Yes, it was a predatory, but there was something else that Hermione couldn't put her finger on. All she knew was in that moment she had never felt more drawn to anyone in her entire life. She felt a dizzying mixture of emotions that contradicted each other; turbulent, serene, apprehensive, eager, nervous, and most of all . . . excited.

The bookworm shook her head before she could delve too deep into her thoughts. _'Knock it off this instant Granger. You're reading far too into this. She used her thrall to get what she wanted and all these thoughts you are having are tainted, because of that.'_

"You alright 'Mione?" Harry raised an eyebrow at his friend who was still chewing on the end of her quill. She barely paid attention the entire period and was so out of it she didn't even hear the bell ring, signaling the end of Snape's borefest.

"Huh?" Hermione snapped out of her stupor as she looked around and saw everyone filing out of the classroom.

Harry to looked at his friend curiously, a bit of concern swimming in his green orbs; it wasn't like Hermione to blank out in class even if it was Potions. "I asked if you're alright. You seemed like you were somewhere else completely during Snape's lecture . . .not that I blame you." He chuckled.

"Oh, I'm fine." She tried to sound reassuring as she hastily packed up her things. "I'm just tired I suppose."

"Well I'm sure your flying lesson with Ginny today will wake you right up." Harry's grin grew wider when he noticed the blood drain from his friend's cheeks.

"I completely forgot about that . . ."

Harry couldn't help but laugh at Hermione's obvious trepidation; he couldn't believe after everything they had been through that Hermione was still so afraid of flying.

"What do you think the chances are that she forgot about our flying lesson?" She sighed as they exited the classroom.

All the hope that Hermione had that she might be able to skip out on flying that day dissipated when Ginny's voice cut into their conversation. "Very slim." She smirked.

/

To say that Fleur Delacour was shaken up would be an understatement. She thought that sleeping with Veronique would give her confidence a much-needed boost, however to her dismay, the complete opposite occurred. She felt worse than she did before and now she couldn't help but think that maybe Hermione was right about her. Nobody had ever said such things to her, especially when she was in a state of undress. Usually when was down to her underwear and put on the charm people were putty in her hands and would do anything to see the rest of her clothing off, but instead Hermione was offended and most definitely upset with her.

She didn't mean for things to go that far in the prefect's bathroom. The plan was to dangle the carrot in front of the horse's face and then take it away, leaving Hermione wanting her, but instead she threw the carrot in the horse's mouth and it spit it right back in her face. Her ego was in shreds and to top it all off Madame Maxine was running her into the ground with training; she hardly had a moment to herself and all she wanted to do was write and draw in her journal to try to make sense of things.

She found herself staring at the back of Hermione's head once again in the dining hall while she absentmindedly played with her food she had yet to take a bite of. She watched as Hermione's lips wrapped around her fork and the way her tongue swiped slowly across her lower lip to pick up any remnants of food. Her blue eyes almost immediately started glowing as Hermione's actions inadvertently brought her back to that night before it all came crashing down; it still made her heart race and excited her Veela to no end. She bit her lower lip and her spoon started to slowly slip out of her hand as her imagination drifted to what could have been if she had just closed that small space between them.

_**"See something you like?"** _

Fleur jumped and dropped her spoon when Veronique's voice shook her from her daydream. _**"I was just spacing out."**_ Fleur grumbled as the raven haired girl sat in front of her, effectively blocking her view of Hermione Granger.

Veronique raised an eyebrow at Fleur's odd behavior; it was fairly clear that she was openly staring at the golden girl. _**"If you say so."**_

_**"Hey guys."**_ Odette smiled as she sat down next to her obviously dejected alpha pushing her food around.

Veronique looked almost offended by Odette's cheery demeanor; she was always like that. For the longest time it had been just her and Fleur, but then two years ago Odette came along and never left because for some weird reason Fleur took pity on the clueless red head. She wouldn't say that she disliked the girl, they got along just fine, she just wouldn't be all that bummed out if she stopped hanging out with them.

_**"Do you guys have anything planned for this afternoon?"**_ Odette looked at her friends with bright eyes. _**"Or do you have training again?"**_ She turned her attention back to the brooding blonde.

Fleur simply shook her head without looking up from her food. _**"No. Madame Maxime is giving me the day off to rest."**_

_**"That's perfect!"**_ Odette's smile brightened even more. _**"Some Durmstrang boys invited us to play quidditch with them this afternoon after classes!"**_

_**"I don't know . . ."**_ Fleur sighed and dropped her spoon; food had no appeal to her at the moment. _**"I think I'm just going to get some rest."**_

_**"Want some company?"**_ Veronique grinned over at the blonde, sending her a wink.

Fleur had to refrain from grimacing at her forward proposal; sex with Veronique held no appeal to her either. _**"No."**_

_**"Come on Fleur."**_ Odette moved closer to her friend, grabbing her hand. Fleur's somber mood did not go unnoticed by her and seeing her alpha so upset set off this almost primal urge to make her happy and brighten her mood. _**"It will be fun!"**_

_**"I really-"** _

_**"Please!"**_ Odette put on her best puppy dog face which she knew Fleur would never say no to.

Fleur tried not to look at her friend and cave in, but once she caught a glimpse of Odette's hopeful face she knew she couldn't deny her request. _**"Fine, but if it gets boring I'm leaving."**_

Odette's smile had to be contagious, because Fleur found herself smiling a little back. _**"It won't! I promise!"**_

_**"Seriously?"**_ Veronique huffed and crossed her arms. _**"You guys know I hate quidditch."**_ She grumbled.

_**"You can cheer us on!"**_ Odette jumped up and down in her seat like a child who had been fed too much candy.

_**"Yeah."**_ Fleur smirked over at Veronique who was obviously displeased. _**"You like to watch right?"**_ She raised a blonde eyebrow and she could swear that look in Veronique's dark green eyes could kill.

_**"Fuck off."**_ Veronique spat out before she got up and stormed out of the great hall.

/

Hermione wished she could say she was surprised when Ginny abandoned her to play quidditch in the middle of their flying lesson, but it wouldn't be the first time the red head left her hovering in the air not sure of what to do. A part of her wanted to drop to the ground and go get lost in a good book, but the stubborn Gryffindor in her made her stay hovering watching the match between the Hogwarts, Durmstrang, and Beauxbatons students. She played with the idea of venturing off on her own, but when she tried to fly forward a little she found herself wobbling and decided that staying in place would be the safest route.

_**"Of course Viktor is out here showing off."**_ Fleur grumbled darkly as she and her two friends approached the quidditch pitch. She couldn't stop herself from rolling her eyes when she saw the seeker do a hand stand on his broom to show off for his fan girls. She was surprised she didn't see him looking down at said fan girls squealing but was instead looking over to his left with a confident gleam in his eyes. She followed his line of sight to see Hermione Granger hovering on a broom, looking a little flushed and uncomfortable. She had to bite her tongue and keep her hands firmly at her sides to stop herself from hexing the cocky Bulgarian right off his broomstick.

Fleur's attentive stare in Hermione's direction did not go unnoticed by Veronique's watchful eye. She wished Fleur would give up on the golden girl already; she didn't understand what people saw in the brunette. Sure, she was attractive, but she was such a bore and so . . . vanilla. _**"He's showing off for your girlfriend."**_ She couldn't help throwing a jab at Fleur in hopes of provoking her to do something uncalled for.

_**"Shut up."**_ Fleur glared over at Veronique whose mood seem to sour even more when she caught sight of the golden girl. She turned her gaze back up to Hermione, but when looking at the Gryffindor proved to be too painful and tempting at the same time she cast her eyes downwards. Her Veela thrashed around inside of her in protest; she knew how badly it wanted her, but her pride was far too wounded to play with the idea of trying to get close to the girl again. She had a long way to go before she would be able to get the brunette in her bed and for once in her life she was truly scared she wouldn't win a bet with Veronique and she would be forced to hand over her diary.

Veronique noticed Fleur's suddenly despondent demeanor; she had looked like that all week and it didn't sit well with her. _**"Don't tell me you're still sulking over that prude."**_ Veronique sneered as she crossed her arms and sent her glare to the unsuspecting prefect hovering above them. _**"Why do you care what little Miss Goody Two Shoes thinks anyways?"**_

_**"I don't!"**_ Fleur straightened herself and put her cold veil firmly back in place; she still forgot the dangers of letting the mask slip sometimes. _**"I'm just reevaluating my approach."**_ She put her nose in the air with a haughty look on her face.

_**"Oh, my mistake."**_ Veronique smirked at the Fleur's obvious lie; she knew her better than most. _**"For a second there I thought your feelings got hurt."**_

_**"Don't be absurd."**_ Fleur got onto her broomstick, disliking where this conversation was going.

Veronique smirk turned into a sly smile when she saw the blonde attempting to brush off her comments she knew to be true; many thought Fleur Delacour was heartless, but she knew from personal experience that she was far from that. _**"Even so . . ."**_ She loved toying with the Veela's emotions that were so plain for her to see. _**"Perhaps a little retribution is in order."**_ Her forest green eyes swirled with mischief as she directed her gaze back to little miss perfect; god how she despised girls like Hermione Granger.

_**"Veronique. Whatever you're scheming-"**_ _Fleur_ started, but before she could stop her impulsive friend the broom jinx had already left Veronique twisted lips.

Fleur looked up to see Hermione's broom start to violently jerk to and fro; she started to fly in her direction, but the nerdy girl was quick on her feet and pulled out her wand to perform the counter-curse. Fleur stopped midflight and almost let out a sigh of relief; she always seemed to forget that Hermione knew plenty of spells and was perfectly capable of taking care of herself. She turned to glare at Veronique who wore an innocent look on her face while Odette looked mildly displeased at the conniving girls actions.

What happened next was completely unexpected. Fleur turned her gaze back to the brunette, her blue eyes widening when she heard someone yell "Heads up!"

It was painfully obvious in that moment how little Hermione Granger knew about sports, because she just stayed in her position looking completely perplexed as a bludger came speeding in her direction. Before it made contact with Hermione's head Fleur was already speeding towards her, but there was nothing she could do to stop the black iron ball from making direct contact with her temple, sending her falling off her broom.

Fleur willed her broomstick to go faster; getting hit in the head by a bludger was bad but falling fifty feet after getting hit with one was far worse. She grit her teeth, aiming her broom in Hermione's direction to catch up with her momentum and when she was close enough, only ten feet from the ground, Fleur jumped catching the girl midair. In that moment she had never been more grateful for Madame Maxine's training and her sharp Veela reflexes.

Fleur's shoulders and limbs protested against the rough movement as they tumbled to the ground, but Fleur kept a tight hold on the unconscious brunette until their movement stopped. She landed on top of Hermione but scrambled off quickly of her to sit on her knees next to the injured girl. She carefully placed her arm under Hermione's shoulders and lifted her off the grass, shaking her gently. "'Ermione. 'Ermione!" She took note of the peaceful look on the golden girl's face as she used her free hand to move some of her soft brown locks out of her eyes to uncover the big circular red mark marring her perfect skin. "'Ermione wake up."

Not two seconds later Hermione's eyes fluttered opened and darted left to right assessing where she was, but it didn't seem to help at all. The first thing she noticed was a hand on her face that quickly withdrew itself when she looked over at it. The second thing she noticed was long blonde locks that seemed to glow in the sun, light tan skin, and then a pair of silvery blue eyes that looked troubled. ' _What's wrong . . .? Why is she looking at me like that . . .? Better yet . . . who is she?'_

Fleur took note of the far-off look in Hermione's amber eyes and was taken aback when they landed on her with an almost serene look in them. _**'**_ _Why is she looking at me like zat?'_ Fleur felt her cheeks heat up when Hermione continued to stare at her unabashedly. "'Ermione . . . do you know where you are?"

Hermione either didn't hear her question or didn't care to answer it, because her only response was to reach up and run her fingers through her long blonde hair she was suddenly fascinated by. "So soft . . ." She mumbled to herself as she watched the strands slip through the cracks in her fingers before she turned her attention back to those arctic eyes she wished she could spend all day looking at. "Are you an angel?"

"Oi! You broke Hermione!" Ron yelled up at a sheepish looking Durmstrang student who held a beater's bat while everyone approached the two girls.

Viktor Krum came speeding down on his broomstick and almost ran to the confused Gryffindor. "Hermy-own are you okay?" Fleur pulled her attention from Hermione and gave the Bulagarian her best warning look to stay away.

"Hey! Get off her Phlegm!" Ginny interrupted the pair, pulling Fleur away with a glare while the blonde refrained from hexing the red head into next week.

"I zink you failed to notice zat Fleur caught 'Ermione!" Odette stepped up to her alpha's defense, glaring just as heatedly at Ginny as she was at Fleur.

"Fleur . . ." Hermione said the word slowly as she was lifted onto her feet by Ginny and Ron. Fleur felt her Veela almost crow with pride when she noticed Hermione ignored everyone else with her gaze still firmly locked on her.

"Yes . . . Fleur." Ginny rolled her eyes as she put Hermione's arm around her shoulder. "We hate her remember?"

Fleur stood there with her jaw clenched and her lips in a tight line to stop herself from lashing out at the youngest Weasley but refrained for the sake of Hermione who was obviously out of it.

"Fleur . . ." Hermione said the name again, her brow furrowing as she looked from Ginny back to the brooding blonde. "I don't hate Fleur." The golden girl looked a little upset that Ginny would even say such a thing. "She's an angel."

Viktor looked almost hurt while everyone's eyes widened at Hermione's statement and Fleur's face seemed to turn an even deeper shade of red; this was something she never imagined Hermione would say about her especially after their run in in the bathroom.

"Okay. You're right Ron." Ginny looked over at her brother who had Hermione's other arm around his shoulder. "Hermione is broken. That bludger knocked the sense right out of her."

Hermione looked even more confused than she was before as she looked between Ron and Ginny. "Bludger?"

"Yeah, you got knocked real good 'Mione. Now come on, we need to get you to Madame Pomfrey before you get stuck like this." Ron sighed as they started walking towards the castle.

"I can carry her if you vould like." Viktor stepped forward and Fleur narrowed her eyes at his "noble" gesture.

"No." Hermione frowned and seemed to shy away from the intense quidditch player. "I want Fleur to take me." She planted her feet and tried to stand in place, making the Weasley kids' job even more difficult.

Ginny grunted as she put more effort into dragging the stubborn and surprisingly strong bookworm towards the castle. "Don't be ridiculous 'Mione and stop being so bloody difficult!"

Fleur knew she was unwelcome when it came to Hermione and her friends, but watching the two red heads struggle with the girl acting like a petulant child made her feel like it was her duty to at least offer her assistance, plus it might even get her some brownie points with Hermione. "I can 'elp."

"No!" Ginny snapped at the blonde, her green eyes shining dangerously.

"She was just trying to-" Veronique started to cut in, getting tired of the bickering.

"I know what she was trying to do." Green clashed with darker green as Ginny sent her heated glare in Veronique's direction. "We got this."

"But-" Hermione started to whine.

"If you still feel like seeing Fleur after we take you to the medical wing we will go see her, but I highly doubt that." The crowd dispersed as Ginny rolled her eyes and they walked past the trio of Beauxbatons students.

Fleur looked down and felt her newly raised confidence drop at Ginny's statement; this dazed Hermione was a nice contrast to the one who hated her. She knew that what Ginny said was true and when Hermione was all fixed up she would go right back to glaring at her and cutting her with her words.

"Bye Fleur."

Fleur's head snapped back up when she heard Hermione's sweet voice. The brunette was looking over her shoulder while the two red heads dragged her away with a big dopey smile on her face and it was directed right at her. She couldn't help but smile a little in return and wave which just made Hermione's smile widen even more.

"Did you see that?" Fleur heard Hermione's giddy voice fading away. "She smiled at me." The Veela could imagine Ginny and Ron's eyes rolling into the back of their head at the bookworm's excitement.

"Hermione!" Ginny practically whined. "You're my girlfriend! Remember?"

The last thing Fleur heard was a soft uncharacteristic giggle come from Hermione's lips. "Oops."

Veronique crossed her arms, glaring at Hermione Granger's retreating form and felt a whole new level of disgust for the golden girl. _**"I guess all it took was a good knock in the head to gain her affection."**_ She turned to look at Fleur who was now glaring at her accusingly with Odette right behind her. _**"Oh, don't look at me like that. I bewitched the broom, I didn't bewitch the bludger."**_ She scoffed as she started to walk away from the two Veela.

_**"She could have gotten seriously hurt from that alone!"**_ Odette spoke up and Veronique almost laughed at the sweet red head who was brave enough to step up to her.

Veronique turned back around, her green eyes shining with barely veiled amusement. _**"Don't be a child Odette. She's fine."**_ Her eyes flickered over to Fleur who stood there with her lips in a tight line and a dangerous glint in her sapphire eyes. She eyed the blonde warily when she took a couple slow calculated steps toward her, she could practically feel the rage coming off of Fleur in waves.

It was one thing for Veronique to mess with her and cause a little bit of mischief that she knew she adored so much; it was another to endanger someone's life for fun. _**"Don't ever do that again."**_ Fleur said through gritted teeth.

Veronique's blood red lips curled into a smirk and raised an eyebrow at the irritated Veela to make it very clear that her words had no effect on her. _**"And what are you going to do about it Fleur?"**_ Veronique took a step forward toward the seething blonde and put her lips to her ear. _**"Are you going to punish me?"**_ She emphasized her question with a flick of her tongue to Fleur's earlobe.

Fleur pulled her head back when she felt Veronique's wet tongue touch her ear and tried to give her friend a stern look so she would know how deadly serious she was about this matter. _**"I mean it Veronique. It wasn't funny."**_

_**"Relax Fleur."**_ Veronique smiled and reached a delicate hand forward, running her thumb over Fleur's plump lower lip. _**"You shouldn't worry so much. Your face is going to get stuck like that."**_

Fleur had to hold back an irritated growl when Veronique leaned forward and pressed a lingering kiss to the edge of her lips. She stood stark still with her eyes narrowed as her insufferable friend pulled away and winked at her before she walked away. _'She 'as some nerve.'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe this is an unpopular opinion, but I rather like broken Hermione haha anyways, I would love to hear your guys' thoughts on this chapter :)


	6. The Genius Next Door

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once more, here's another chapter. The song that somewhat inspired this one is The Genius Next Door by Regina Spektor. It mainly helped me write the second half of the chapter :)   
> Friendly reminder, French is in bold and italics while thoughts are just in italics   
> Hope you guys enjoy :)

The first thing that registered in Hermione's brain was a soft pillow beneath her head, the second was a pounding headache that stemmed from her left temple. She willed hey eyelids to open but regretted the decision almost immediately when light flooded her vision and felt as if it was piercing her.

"Look who decided to wake up."

Ginevra Weasley's voice was not what Hermione expected to hear and was honestly not a welcome intrusion to the silence that had enveloped her before.

"Ugh . . ." Hermione groaned as she slowly moved herself into an upright position.

"How are you feeling Casanova?" Ginny looked at the brunette with an amused twinkle in her eye. She wasn't entirely sure if Hermione remembered everything that happened after she was hit with the bludger, but she had a sneaking suspicion that she had no recollection of her actions.

Hermione looked over at the red head warily, unsure of why Ginny looked so amused at her obvious discomfort. "Casanova? What the blood hell are you going on about?"

A cheshire grin spread across Ginny's face when she saw the irritation and confusion evident on Hermione's face. "Do you know how you got here?"

Hermione looked around the room and it took a second for her to realize she was in the medical wing instead of her own bed. "No . . ." She reached her hand up to touch her aching temple, but another sharp pain told her that was a stupid thing to do. "What happened?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Ginny prodded, hoping that Hermione might be able to put a little of the puzzle together herself.

"I . . ." Hermione furrowed her brow, trying to search through her memories and recall what had brought her to this place. "I was flying, watching your game of quidditch and . . ." She fisted the sheets tightly in her hands, desperately trying to recall anything else that had happened, but it was all blank. "That's it." Hemione looked back to Ginny still wearing that insufferable smile on her face.

"That's it?"

"Yes." Hermione glared at the girl she was growing more and more frustrated with by the second; she didn't understand what was so amusing about this situation. "I just told you that's all I remember."

"Oh boy." Ginny laughed. "This is too good to be true."

Hermione bristled upon hearing the laughter spill from the youngest Weasley's lips. "I fail to see how this is in any way funny Ginevra Weasley. Now do you mind telling me what the hell is going on?"

Instead of answering the clearly irritated brunette Ginny stood up and grabbed a vial from the bedside table and handed it to Hermione. "You're going to want to drink this." Hermione just looked confused as she took the potion from Ginny's hands. "I'm sure you have a killer headache and I think what I'm about to tell you might make it worse."

"Ginny, what the -"

"Just drink it 'Mione." Ginny sighed as she reclaimed her seat. She waited for Hermione to put the vial to her lips and tilt her head back before she continued with what she was sure was going to be an interesting conversation. "Now, to answer your question . . . " The red head cleared her throat and scooted her seat back a little in case Hermione decided to lash out at her. "You got hit in the head with a bludger and were knocked right off your broom."

"Okay . . ."

"It was a hell of a fall." Ginny continued when she realized that fact alone wasn't jogging Hermione's memory. "You're lucky you didn't break anything."

Hermione looked down at her body and saw that it was indeed more or less unscathed which just led her to be even more perplexed than she was before. "I was hovering pretty high . . . How is that possible?"

"Oh, this is where it gets good." Ginny grinned, sitting up a little in her seat. "Fleur caught you."

"Fleur?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.

"Bloody Hell! It's worse than I thought!" Ginny cried out dramatically which proved to further aggravate the confused Gryffindor. "You don't remember who Fleur is!?"

"Don't be absurd Ginny. I remember who Fleur is!" Hermione huffed and crossed her arms. "I just didn't know she was there."

"Thank Merlin." Ginny let out a sigh of relief as she slumped in her chair.

Hermione carefully watched the young chaser wondering if she was going to continue or if that was all there was to the story but seeing how Ginny reacted to her skepticism led her to believe there was more. "Well . . .?"

"Well what?"

Sometimes Hermione swore she could strangle Ginevra Weasley; she had a flare for the dramatic and loved to toy with her, especially when she had information that Hermione was interested in. "Don't be daft Ginny! Is there more?"

"Oh. Not really." Ginny shrugged and acted nonchalant, but the grin creeping back onto her face betrayed her earlier statement. "You were kind of out of it . . . oh and you all but professed your undying love for Fleur Delacour. No big deal."

The color drained from Hermione's face at this mortifying revelation; there was no way it could be true. Hermione Granger didn't go around professing her love to people, no matter how pretty, especially if that person is Fleur Delacour. "You're lying . . ."

Ginny had done a decent job keeping her composure during her revelation, but the look on the golden girl's face was making the task increasingly difficult. "Oh Hermione . . ." Ginny stood up and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm not creative enough to make this up."

"W-what did I say?" Hermione squeaked out.

"Hmmm . . . let me see . . ." Ginny put her finger to her chin in thought to drag out this sweet moment; she didn't often get the chance to see Hermione so perturbed. "I believe you called her an angel and proceeded to throw a fit when I separated you two. You insisted that you wanted Fleur to take you to the nurse and on the way here you droned on forever about how pretty and perfect Delacour is to me and Ron. You took hero worship to a whole new level."

"This is a nightmare . . ." Hermione mumbled to herself, looking more horrified than Ginny thought was possible. "I'm going to wake up any second and – OW!" Hermione jumped and rubbed the bright pink spot on her arm where her friend had just pinched her.

"Well, I guess that rules out a nightmare." Ginny laughed. "You're very much awake and I'm very hurt by the way!" The red head put on her best upset exterior. "You have some nerve openly ogling and hitting on another chick right in front of your girlfriend!"

Hermione shoved her friend that was a little too amused by her misfortune. "I'm not in the mood for your jokes!" The brunette crossed her arms, a light blush adorning her cheeks. "Please tell me nobody saw this . . ."

"Alright." Ginny smiled and shrugged. "Nobody saw it."

"Ginny!" Hermione cried out and threw a pillow at the red head. It was obvious by Ginny's casual tone that plenty of people saw her like that. It was bad enough that she had acted in a way that was so unbecoming of her usual demeanor but knowing that people saw her like that made it even worse.

"Oh, calm down Hermione." Ginny rolled her eyes and bravely took a seat at the edge of the bed. "I doubt anyone cares and if they do it will blow over in a day or two."

"Yeah, you're probably right . . ." Hermione sighed, a little relieved by Ginny's words. She already received plenty of unwanted attention and really did not want to give people any more reason to harass her. Sometimes she really missed the old days when she could hide out in the library and be left to her own devices.

"And it's not like you're going to go through this alone." Ginny looked at her nails in a bored manner.

Hermione raised an eyebrow at the odd statement; who else would be going through what she was. "What do you mean?"

"Everyone is going to know my girlfriend is a hussy!" Ginny exclaimed, throwing her hands up dramatically. "I'm going to be the laughing stock of Hogwarts!"

Hermione could feel her eyebrow twitch in irritation; this was it . . . the straw that broke the camel's back . . . she was going to Azkaban, because she was going to murder Ginevra Weasley. "You insufferable prat!" Hermione yelled as she kicked the once again laughing chaser off the bed. "Get out!"

Ginny scrambled to her feet and ran out the door; she didn't need to be told twice. She did thoroughly enjoy riling the golden girl up, but the repercussions of doing such a thing weren't always worth it.

"Honestly . . . what is wrong with that girl?" Hermione sighed as she laid back in the bed, staring up at the ceiling with a thoughtful look on her face. Now that she was by herself she had the chance to properly process the information she just received. _'Fleur saved me . . .?'_ She wasn't quite sure what she should do with that. Heroic action like that didn't sound like something Fleur Delacour would do, but then again she didn't really know that much about the blonde to begin with so who was she to say what her usual behavior was. The only thing she really knew about Fleur was that she's a Veela, very forward, has the cutest dimples located on her lower back, and the best . . . _'Damnit Granger! Stop thinking like that!'_ The brunette scolded herself. It was true she didn't have much to go on when it came to the heiress, but the letter she received was filled with enough information to sufficiently scare her off. _'But how much trust can I put in a stranger's words?'_

"Damnit. Can't I have one relaxing year?" Hermione groaned when her head started to hurt again from too many thoughts running through it. _'I'll just have to sort this out later.'_

_/_

It had been two days since the incident on the Quidditch pitch and much to Fleur's chagrin things had returned to normal. She was walking down the hall the day before when she saw Hermione with Ginny and Harry by her side. She faltered in her steps and held her breath when the golden girl glanced over at her with those bright amber eyes that had looked at her with such wonder less that twenty-four hours before. There was a spark of recognition when their eyes met and for a second Fleur thought that Hermione might smile at her the way she did before or say something, but things hardly went the blonde's way anymore.

Hermione just walked right by Fleur as if she hadn't noticed her to begin with; as if she was nothing at all. Her aching shoulder reminded her that she had risked life and limb to help the ungrateful girl and this was all she got in return. _'Figures.'_ Fleur thought darkly to herself and made sure her cold mask was firmly in place before she continued on to her class.

She was currently feigning disinterest in the dining hall and had to refrain from rolling her eyes as she watched yet another concerned student approach Hermione to ask if she was alright.

_**"That has to be the twentieth person to approach her this hour alone. Who knew Hogwarts was full of so many suck ups."**_ Veronique voiced Fleur's own personal thoughts, but that only earned the conniving girl a glance from the still irritated Veela.

Fleur hadn't really spoken to the raven-haired girl since the incident with the broom and was still upset that she would do something so dangerous. Sometimes it seemed as if Veronique had no limits when it came to her wickedness; sure, they were both known to play games with people, but there were some lines Fleur wouldn't cross.

The Veela in her longed to put Veronique in her place, to make her submit and show her who the alpha of their group is, but unfortunately Veronique was not part of her flock or even Veela for that matter. She hated how easily the devilish girl could get under her skin; how she could provoke her into doing things she wouldn't normally do, but despite her faults she had been a true friend to her when she was at her lowest and to this day she felt as if she owed Veronique something. That didn't mean she couldn't be upset at her friend though.

_**"They're better than snobs like you."** _

Gabrielle found the best and worst times to butt into conversations and it was safe to say she wasn't a big fan of Veronique. She had gotten along with her sister just fine before, but once the dark-haired imp came along everything changed. She wasn't sure why; all she knows is that Fleur wasn't the same after meeting Veronique.

_**"I'm a snob?"**_ Veronique raised an amused eyebrow at the youngest Delacour. _**"What does that make you then?"**_

Gabrielle opened her mouth to retort, but Fleur really didn't feel like dealing with another fight between the two of them. _**"That's enough. I am not in the mood to listen to your bickering today."**_

_**"Oh? What has your feathers so ruffled?"**_ Veronique pressed, poking Fleur playfully in the side but received no reaction from the blonde. _**"Come on Fleur. Don't tell me you're still mad at me."**_

Once again Fleur ignored the pesky girl and turned her attention back to the Gryffindor table. Hermione must have felt her intense gaze, because not two seconds later she looked up from her book to lock eyes with the Veela. Fleur was surprised to see that her stare was almost apologetic but didn't have much time to dwell on it when she noticed Ginny staring at her heatedly. She held back the annoyed growl that wanted to emanate from her throat as she dropped her fork and stood up. She had had her fill of being treated like a leper and didn't much care to stick around so Ginny Weasley could stare her down.

_**"Where are you going?"**_ Gabrielle asked and if Fleur didn't know any better she would think her sibling was concerned.

_**"I've lost my appetite."**_ She shot Ginny a pointed look before storming out of the great hall; there was only so much she could take.

/

Hermione took note of Fleur's upset disposition and couldn't stop her eyes from following her retreating form; she knew her obvious anger was probably because of her. She had had a couple of chances to thank the Veela, but whenever the time came she always thought it better to not say anything. Ginny told her not to bother and that the blonde was the one who probably set the bludger flying at her, but Hermione found that hard to believe.

"Excuse me."

Hermione turned around when a masculine voice interrupted her thoughts. "Yes?" She looked at the boy sporting a Hufflepuff robe up and down warily; he had dark brown hair and light blue eyes that brought her thoughts back to Fleur for all of a second. She had never talked to this boy before, but she had spending a lot of time talking to people she didn't know these days.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your lunch, but I heard about what happened on the Quidditch pitch and just wanted to say I'm happy you're okay."

"Oh, thank you." She took note of her sore cheeks as she tried to put on her best practiced appreciative smile. She had been smiling all day, thanking people, trying to reassure them she was fine, and politely declining their offer to take her out on a date.

She kept her grin firmly in place while the boy's voice started to fade into the background as her mind wandered to the quote "You can only hold a smile for so long, after that it's just teeth." She had learned these past couple years how true that quote by her favorite author really is. She often found herself in front of a camera being blinded by the flashing light and being instructed on how to look, where to stand, and what emotion to portray. She was sick of it.

"So what do you say?"

"Huh?" Hermione was shaken from her thoughts once more by the young Hufflepuff looking at her expectantly. "Oh, I'm sorry. You seem really nice." She didn't have to be a genius to realize that he had asked her out just like all the others that came before him. "But I'm already dating someone." She nodded her head in Ginny's direction who gave the Hufflepuff a look that sent him scrambling away from the pair as fast as he could.

"Could you try to be nicer?" Hermione glared over at Ginny who was trying to stifle her laughter.

"Don't get your knickers in a twist 'Mione." Ginny ruffled the already irritated brunette's hair. "It's all in good fun."

"I think you and I have a very different idea of fun." Hermione grumbled as she tried to go back to reading her book. She prayed that no one else would come up and disturb her; it felt like someone came up to talk to her every five minutes. She wanted to be nice and courteous to all the students coming to offer their well wishes, but she couldn't take it anymore. If one more person came up to talk to her she was afraid she was going to snap and that would not be good for anyone.

"Hey there 'Mione." Harry smiled as he took a seat next to his long-time friend. "How are you feeling?" He jumped when the only response he got was the bookworm snapping her book shut.

"I need to get some air." She mumbled as she stood up from the table.

"D-did I say something wrong?" He paled as Hermione retreated and he looked over at a laughing Ginny.

/

Hermione let out an agitated huff, clinging tightly to her book as her feet stomped on the warm grass to the great lake. She knew she would have to apologize to Harry for leaving like that; he meant well, but she just couldn't take it anymore. _'All I want is a little peace . . . is that too much to ask?'_ She thought glumly to herself as she reached a quiet corner of the lake only to realize that Fleur Delacour was sitting off to her right drawing in a brown book. _'Apparently it is.'_

"What are you doing here?" Hermione glanced at the Veela out of the corner of her eye. "Are you stalking me?"

The golden girl was surprised by the mirthless chuckle that came from the blonde's lips. "I was 'ere first mademoiselle Granger." Fleur spoke without looking up from her journal or stopping what she was doing. "'ow could I possibly be stalking you?"

_'True.'_ Hermione mused to herself as she looked out at the tentacles of the infamous squid that resided in the body of water sway about. She thought about leaving, it would be quite easy to do, but this was her favorite place to be besides the library and Fleur seemed to be too preoccupied to bother her. Surprisingly enough, she actually found the sound of Fleur's quill scratching across the surface of the parchment to be quite comforting.

She closed her eyes, letting out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding in as she just listened to the sound of Fleur scribbling away. She briefly wondered what the blonde might be drawing but thought better of asking seeing as they weren't that well acquainted.

When she opened her eyes again she was greeted by the sight of Viktor running by with his gang of groupies not far behind. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye and it seemed as if he was going to stop to talk to her for a second, but when his eyes flickered over to the blonde a couple feet away a scowl overcame his features and he just kept running. Hermione wouldn't admit it, but she was kind of grateful that Fleur had that effect on the quidditch star.

"Eet's exhausting isn't eet?"

Hermione was surprised when Fleur's velvety voice broke the comfortable silence that had enveloped them. She eyed the Veela that was still very much occupied with whatever she was drawing a little warily, unsure of where she was going with this, but decided she would take the bait this time. "What is?"

"'aving people watch your every move, always pestering you, always expecting somezing." Fleur finally tore her eyes off the page to meet bewildered amber.

It was safe to say Hermione was a little shocked; she didn't expect to see so much understanding in Fleur's arctic gaze. "Yeah . . ." Hermione nodded her head, thoroughly perplexed by the enigma that is Fleur Delacour. "It really is. Sometimes . . ." She paused, unsure as to why she suddenly felt compelled to speak so openly with the young heiress; maybe she wanted someone to understand or maybe she just needed someone that wasn't so close to the situation to listen. Ron loved being in the spotlight and Harry would just feel guilty and hold himself responsible for her growing discomfort of being in the public eye and all that came with it. "It's all too much. I get so overwhelmed that I'm scared I'm going to just snap and scream in the middle of the corridor."

Hermione's ears perked when she heard light laughter spill from Fleur's mouth; she decided in that moment she liked the sound of the Veela's melodious laugh even better than her quill working across parchment.

"Oui. I know ze the feeling quite well."

For a moment they forgot that they weren't on the best terms as they stared at one another, an amused look on both of their faces at their shared misery, but it was short lived. In an instant the light atmosphere was broken when Hermione looked away and uncomfortably loosened her tie.

_'Probably a nervous 'abit.'_ Fleur thought to herself with a smirk as she went back to her art.

They slipped back into silence as Hermione started to really feel the heat of the sun beating down on her. It was surprisingly hot for an Autumn afternoon, but she supposed wearing a big black robe was doing nothing to help the situation.

Fleur paused her doodling when she heard the ruffle of clothing hitting the grass and almost dropped her quill at the sight before her. She sat there in awe for a second; it was such an odd and rare sensation to see the girl she had fantasized about not only meet but exceed the heiress' expectations. Hermione Granger was indeed the brightest witch of her age, but she was also drop dead gorgeous, statuesque . . . _'Parfait.'_ She thought breathlessly to herself as her eyes raked up Hermione's tanned and toned legs that until now had always been hidden beneath that blasted robe. She didn't know why Hermione wore the damned thing when that Hogwarts plaid skirt accentuated her killer legs and shapely hips so well. In her opinion, it should be considered a crime to cover her curvaceous figure that that white button up shirt complimented perfectly.

She continued to openly stare at the golden girl, almost as if she was in a daze until amber eyes caught her lingering stare. She quickly snapped her attention back to her book when she realized she had been caught and waited for the onslaught of verbal lashings she was sure to receive for looking at Hermione Granger in that way but was surprised when none came.

Hermione just turned her attention back to the lake and stood there quietly while Fleur continued her drawing. If she was honest with herself she was flattered by Fleur's lingering gaze; it wasn't a predatory look, but one of appreciation and intrigue. She had to admit that she was slightly curious about the Veela herself. She had a million questions burning in her mind to ask the blonde, but there was one that was at the forefront. "Why did you do it?"

If Fleur heard the question it sure didn't show, because she just continued drawing in silence as if the brunette wasn't even there.

Hermione sighed when she realized getting answers from the blonde wasn't going to be as easy as she thought but when she resigned to the fact she wasn't going to get a response Fleur opened her mouth to speak. "Do what?"

It took a moment for the young Gryffindor to realize that Fleur had indeed opened her mouth and seemed willing to have an actual conversation. "Why did you save me?" She turned her gaze back to the mysterious girl.

Fleur scoffed as her hand moved in quick strokes across the page. "What kind of question eez zat?"

"Just tell me." Hermione spoke calmly.

"You are 'Ermione Granger." Fleur's brow furrowed, glaring at the page as if it had offended her. "You saved ze wizarding from zat 'orrible man. Being killed by a stray bludger to ze head would not be a fitting death. You fought in ze glorious battle. You dezerve a glorious death."

Hermione regarded the puzzling girl for a moment before she turned her attention back to the lake. "There was nothing glorious about that battle."

Hermione's bitter tone drew Fleur's attention from her diary to the brunette now leaning against a tree with her arms crossed, looking out at the great lake with glazed over eyes. Fleur couldn't help wondering where she went in that moment. What made her eyes look like sea glass so weathered and worn?

"I'm sorry." Hermione turned her attention back to the Veela that was now blinking dumbly at her.

"For what?"

"For being a prat and not properly thanking you for saving me and . . ." Hermione sighed as she pushed off the tree; apologizing really wasn't her forte. "For all those things I said to you in the prefect's bathroom. It was really mean and uncalled for."

Once again Hermione Granger left Fleur completely baffled and at a loss for words; an apology was the last thing she expected to ever come out of the golden girl's mouth. Yet, here she was sitting on the grass, looking up at a very sheepish looking war hero. "Eet's . . ." Fleur cleared her throat, turning her attention back to the book in front of her, trying to regain her composure. "Eet's fine."

"But . . ." There it was. Fleur was waiting for a but or a good teardown. "It was rotten of you to use your thrall on me like that."

Fleur rolled her eyes; Hermione still really thought she used her thrall on her. "I already told you zat I did not use my zrall on you mademoiselle Granger."

"That can't be true." Hermione blushed, remembering their moment together in the bathroom. She was so drawn to the blonde in that moment that she had almost kissed her and that was something she wouldn't normally do on her own . . . right?

"C'est vrai." Fleur shrugged. "Eef I used my zrall on you eet would feel somezing like zis."

Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but her jaw snapped shut when she felt her head go fuzzy and her body start pleasantly buzzing. Her bright eyes locked onto the blonde as she felt her fingertips start to itch to touch the perfect specimen sitting not five feet away from her. She licked her lips as the urge to walk over to Fleur Delacour and rip her clothes off started to overwhelm her. She made a move to take the Veela right then and there but faltered in her steps when the feeling left almost as soon as it had arrived.

"Now you can say I used my zrall on you."

"T-that was . . ." Hermione shook her head, clearing the fog out of her eyes as her cheeks started to heat up. "Different."

"Do you believe me now?" Fleur raised an eyebrow at the shell-shocked prefect.

"Yeah, but . . ." There it was again. Hermione Granger was having a hard time admitting that any of the feelings she had that night were her own. "You still tried to seduce me." She looked at the Veela accusingly.

Fleur didn't say anything to the brunette's statement; there was nothing to say. If she was honest and said yes then she would be adding fuel to the fire and if she said no she would just be insulting Hermione's intelligence so Fleur decided silence was the best response.

Hermione wanted to force some more answers out of the Veela, but thought better of it when she saw that Fleur wasn't going to confirm or deny her allegation. They both knew what happened in that bathroom and there was no need to keep picking at the scab so she resigned to sitting down on the grass a safe distance away from the young champion.

She tried to focus on the view in front of her, but the sound of Fleur scribbling drew Hermione's attention once more and she couldn't help voicing the question she wanted to ask when she first arrived.

"What are you drawing?"

Fleur's hand stilled its movements as she looked over at the brunette, seeming to assess her threat level to her privacy. She wasn't really drawing anything noteworthy or personal, but she didn't necessarily like anyone looking at her journal all the same.

"You don't have to show me." Hermione said when she saw the blonde's apprehensive demeanor. She wasn't one to invade people's privacy and by the way Fleur was acting, that journal was extremely private and personal. "You've been scribbling away since I got here and I was just curious."

Fleur eyed the Gryffindor suspiciously, unsure of how to take Hermione's approach to getting an insight into her personal thoughts. She had grown accustomed to people trying to snatch her prized possession from her grasp to get a look into the mind of Fleur Delcaour, but Hermione didn't seem to have an interest in forcing her way into Fleur's private thoughts at all. She just seemed like she was genuinely interested and completely harmless.

"Non . . " Fleur chewed on her lower lip, looking down at the page once more before she scooted over to the Gryffindor. "Eet's fine." She hesitantly handed her treasured journal over to Hermione, silently hoping she was right in her assumption that the brunette wouldn't try to flip through it.

Hermione carefully took the journal from Fleur's reluctant hands and almost immediately burst out into laughter when she saw the drawing. She had thought the French student would be drawing something more stoic, but instead she was greeted with the sight of the lake in front of them with the squid's tentacles flailing two figures about.

"Is that Krum . . . and Ginny?" Hermione's laughter increased at the distraught look on the red head's face.

"Maybe." Fleur smiled slyly at the giggling Gryffindor. She was glad Hermione saw the humor in her drawing of the two people that ailed her the most.

Hermione's laughter stilled in her throat as she furrowed her brow, gently touching one of the tentacles swaying around, making the water in the picture ripple. "How do you get it to move like that?"

"Eef I told you, you wouldn't believe me." Fleur's smile widened when Hermione looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Try me."

A somber look suddenly overtook Fleur's countenance as she glanced around to make sure the coast was clear, making Hermione even more curious. _'Does she use some sort of technique I haven't heard of before? Can she really be that brilliant?'_ Hermione moved in closer when the Veela signaled her to do so. If Fleur was being this secretive about it, it must be good.

Fleur's eyes shifted left and right one more time before she spoke in a hushed tone. "Magic."

"Fleur!" Hermione cried out when the blonde burst out in a fit of giggles. "You know what I meant!" The brunette closed the book and hit Fleur on the shoulder with it before tossing it back into her lap.

"I am sorry 'ermione. I couldn't resist." Fleur tried to stifle her laughter as she locked up her journal and turned to sit facing Hermione cross legged. "'ere, let me show you. Give me your 'and."

Hermione looked down at the expectant palm of Fleur Delacour held out right in front of her. She was hesitant to put her hand in the other girl's; what if this was another trick?

"I am not going to 'urt you 'ermione." Fleur rolled her crystal blues at Hermione's hesitance. "I know eet ees 'ard, but just trust me."

"Fine." Hermione grumbled as she took a small leap of faith and placed her hand in the Veelas. She had to stop herself from shuddering when she felt a bolt of electricity shoot up her arm and shimmy down her spine when their skin made contact. If Fleur felt it too, she did a good job of hiding it for she calmly grabbed one of her quills with a softer tip and started to draw on the juncture between Hermione's thumb and wrist.

Hermione would normally protest graffitiing her body, but her curiosity beat out her irritation this time around as she watched Fleur hunch over her hand. It was so strange to see the normally flirty blonde suddenly so stoic and honed in on what she was doing. Her full pink lips were in a straight line and her brow was furrowed as her hand gracefully moved in slow practiced strokes across her skin. She was so zoned in on what shew as doing she didn't even care to move her long blonde locks from her face when they spilled over. She liked the Veela a lot better this way; quiet and regal. Fleur didn't seem like she was putting on an act and when she wasn't trying to get into her pants she was actually quite pleasant to be around.

"Hey!" Hermione jumped and giggled when the light stroking of the quill tickled her skin.

Fleur paused her movements and looked up with twinkling blue eyes slightly hidden behind golden strands, clearly amused by Hermione's outburst.

"Sorry." Hermione blushed under the Veela's playful stare. "It tickled."

Fleur smiled as she switched to a different colored quill and went back to work. "I will try to be more careful."

"What are you drawing?" Hermione tilted her head to the side, trying to get a view of Fleur's work, but all she caught was a glimpse of red and white in no distinct shape. "It better not be something crass."

"S'il vous plaît." Fleur rolled her eyes for what felt like the millionth time that day. "I am not some teenage boy mademoiselle Granger. Now stop squirming and 'old still." Fleur tightened her grip ever so slightly to steady Hermione's hand.

Hermione just huffed and looked off to the side, she wasn't a fan of being told what to do, and even less of a fan of blindly putting her trust in someone else, but she had already come this far and there was no point in going back. She resigned to looking out at the lake as the quill glided across her skin; it still tickled a little, but oddly enough she was starting to find it soothing.

"C'est fini." Fleur smiled as she sat up and put her utensil down.

Hermione looked down at her hand and was confused when she saw what looked like a red and white shell on it. "No offense . . . but what is it?"

"Oh, 'ow careless of me." Fleur put on a fake apologetic look. "Eet needs ze finishing touch."

Hermione watched as the Veela grabbed her hand once more and brought it close to her lips, mumbling something she couldn't quite make out. _'So soft . . .'_ Was the only thing Hermione could think as Fleur placed a kiss on her hand that left her skin tingling. She opened her mouth to reprimand the cocky girl for pulling something like that but stopped when Fleur insistently looked down at Hermione's hand.

Hermione caved and looked down to see that what was on her hand wasn't a shell, but a flower bud that was now blooming right before her eyes into a beautiful white and red amaryllis.

"How did you . . ." Hermione looked back up at the smiling heiress.

"Magic." Fleur shrugged and for once Hermione didn't press the matter. She just looked down at the flower in amazement.

She couldn't believe Fleur Delacour was capable of making something like this, but once again she realized that she really didn't know much about the mysterious girl.

"Do you like eet?" Fleur quiet voice broke Hermione from her silent admiration. It shocked Hermione to hear the normally confidant girl sound insecure over something like a drawing.

_'Who in the bloody hell are you Fleur Delacour?'_ Hermione thought to herself as she looked up at the blonde chewing on her lower lip and staring at her with expectant eyes.

"Yeah." Hermione smiled and that action alone seemed to cause the Veela to relax. "I really do . . . how long have you been able to do this?"

"Eet ees somezing I 'ave practiced since I was little." Fleur shrugged as she neatly placed her utensils back into their case. "Eet's just one of my useless 'obbies."

Hermione frowned at Fleur's description of her art. "I wouldn't call a talent like this useless."

"Oh?" Fleur raised a curious eyebrow.

Hermione smiled as she looked back down at the flower. "It's wonderful."

Fleur watched the brunette with questioning eyes as she gently stroked the pedals with her fingertips. She wasn't used to people appreciating her art, well it wasn't like anyone could really appreciate it anyways when she didn't share it with others. At a young age her mother made it very clear how ridiculous she found her hobby to be when there were more important things for her to learn like running a clan.

The young heiress was surprised that Hermione, of all people, appreciated her work that had always been looked at as nothing more than a distraction from her duties. Hermione's outlook was refreshing and she couldn't believe she found herself truly enjoying the bookworms company. But then again, they had never really had a chance to have a decent conversation what with her girlfriend always following her around like a shadow. Speaking of which, that brought up a great question Fleur hadn't bothered to ask yet.

"Where ees your girlfriend?"

"Who?" Hermione looked up, confusion swimming in her gold and brown eyes before realization hit her. "Oh, you mean Ginny."

"Oui."

"Ginny isn't my girlfriend." Hermione laughed at the look of shock that overtook Fleur's face. She didn't know why she told Fleur the truth; she supposed she was tired of lying and dealing with the red head suffocating her with her constant presence. Ginny meant well, but she could be a real pain in the ass. She didn't know why she went along with Ginny's scheme for so long when she never agreed to it in the first place and in all honesty, it was causing more trouble than it was worth.

"But-"

"Ginny is my friend. She was just trying to keep people from pestering me." Hermione left out the part that it was mainly supposed to be Fleur she was keeping away.

"I see." Fleur mumbled as she looked out to the lake in thought. This was an interesting revelation to say the least; it would seem the youngest Weasley wasn't an obstacle she would have to overcome after all.

"But don't get any ideas." Hermione stood up and glared over at the blonde in warning when she had grown too quiet for the bookworms liking. She cursed herself for slipping up and becoming too comfortable with the seductress; she still had to remember to be careful.

Fleur looked up at the brunette and had to hold back a laugh when she saw Hermione trying to give her a foreboding look. "I wouldn't dream of it." She smiled cheekily at the golden girl putting her robe back on.

"And this doesn't mean we're friends or anything." Hermione said haughtily when she saw the confident gleam back in those sapphire orbs.

You would think those words would bring Fleur down, but the brunette's tone betrayed her statement. "Of course not."

"Well . . ." Hermione straightened out of her clothing. "I guess I will see you in class and . . ." Hermione cleared her throat, loosening her tie a little more. "Thanks again for um . . . you know . . . not letting me die."

Fleur just nodded her head and chewed on her lower lip as she watched the young Gryffindor start to scurry away. "'ermione." Fleur called out, making the bookworm pause in her steps. "I answered some of your questions. Per'aps you can answer one of mine before you depart."

"What is it?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the blonde.

"Who said zose nasty zings about me? I zink I 'ave a right to know who ees badmouzing me." Fleur spoke calmly.

Hermione stood there for a moment, unsure if she should answer, but decided there was no point in hiding the truth. "Honestly, I haven't the foggiest." The Gryffindor shrugged before walking away and leaving a thoroughly confused Veela in her wake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I didn't know any better, I might think these two are starting to like each other :3 haha this chapter was particularly difficult to write, because it's the first time they weren't completely hostile to each other. Hopefully you guys enjoyed the little transition :)


	7. Earth Angel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ya'll ready for another crazy chapter? :3

It had been a couple days since Hermione and Fleur's last encounter and the brunette had yet to see much of the young champion. She sat there waiting for defense against the dark arts to start, impatiently tapping her quill on the table as she reflected on everything that had happened with the mysterious blonde. She looked down to her hand, expecting to see the flower still there, but found immaculately clean flesh instead. She let out a dreamy sigh as she thought back to that day by the lake and found herself smiling when she recalled how Fleur looked up at her behind blonde bangs while she used her hand as her canvas and smiled a genuine smile at the young Gryffindor.

A chair scraping next to her made her jump and drop her quill, rudely shaking her from her daydream. She looked to her right to see the same woman plaguing her thoughts picking up her quill from the floor with a delicate hand and holding it out to her almost as if she was presenting her with flowers.

Hermione looked completely dumbstruck to see Fleur in the flesh once more. The veela hadn't been to any of their classes the last couple of days; she assumed it was because she was busy preparing for the first task that was fast approaching.

"I believe zis belongs to you." Fleur smiled the most charming smile she could muster.

"Oh." Hermione snapped out of her stupor and grabbed the quill from Fleur's waiting hand. "Yeah, thanks."

"Eez everything okay?" Fleur raised an eyebrow at the spacey girl to her left. "You seem a bit . . . out of eet."

A blush slowly crept onto Hermione's cheeks at being caught getting lost in her own thoughts. "Oh, no. I'm fine." Hermione adjusted her tie a little as she turned her attention back to the front of the class. "Just a bit tired."

Fleur observed the girl for a moment more, a small smile creeping onto her face when she noticed Hermione fussing with her tie and fiddling with her quill in her hand. "Eef you say so."

Hermione had to resist glaring at the smirking girl to her right who was obviously amused by her flustered state. She didn't much care to get caught up in the blonde's little game of cat and mouse. Her reaction to the veela was perfectly normal given her looks. Right?

"Alright class. Pull out your books and turn to page 102." Hermione heard practically the entire class groan when they realized that they would be taking notes today instead of dueling. "Today we will be going over defensive magical theory."

Hermione just rolled her eyes at how childish her classmates were as she pulled out her book and promptly turned to the appropriate page. She heard Fleur shuffling around in her bookbag for a moment before the blonde let out a huff and looked over to the girl who was trying desperately to not pay any attention to her.

"I seem to 'ave forgotten my book. Would you mind sharing yours Mademoiselle Granger?"

Hermione eyed the sheepish looking blonde warily before she let out a sigh. "Sure." She grumbled as she pushed the book to the center of their desk. She had to look away when Fleur's smile lit up the whole room and scooted closer to her. _'Does she have to get so bloody close to me to see the text?'_ Hermione inwardly grumbled to herself when the smell of Fleur's expensive perfume invaded her senses and she realized their skin was just an inch away from touching.

"What 'ave I missed?" Fleur spoke quietly while Sirius began his lecture.

"A lot." Hermione tore her gaze from her notes to glare over at Fleur who was watching her with bright blue eyes. "And you're going to miss a lot more if you don't pay attention." The brunette hissed softly before turning her attention back to her parchment, trying to ignore the amused smile that slid onto Fleur's flawless face.

Hermione was grateful that Fleur kept her perfect mouth shut after that and dutifully took notes along with her. As Sirius continued on with his lecture she reached to turn the page, but it seemed Fleur had the same idea and their hands brushed for the briefest of moments before Hermione yanked her hand back so fast you would thing Fleur burned her.

"Pardon." Fleur whispered in her velvety French accent, but the sly smile creeping onto Fleur's face had Hermione thinking she did it on purpose.

"It's fine." Hermione mumbled, pretending to be completely unbothered by the incident as she went back to scribbling.

A light blush started to spread across Hermione's cheeks once more when Fleur scooted her chair closer so that the legs of the chairs were touching and the French girl was beyond invading her personal space.

"Must you be so close?" Hermione growled, making Fleur's smile widen.

"Ees ze proximity bozering you?" Fleur practically breathed down her neck, making shivers run down Hermione's spine.

"Everything alright 'Mione?" Sirius asked, stopping in the middle of his lecture, giving the brunette and blonde a pointed look.

"E-everything's fine." Hermione's blush deepened at the stares she received. "Sorry Professor."

Sirius simply nodded his head as he went back to his lecture and Fleur had to refrain from laughing at the adorable grimace that was now adorning Hermione's face.

Hermione went back to her notes once more, trying to find her focus when she felt Fleur's leg creeping over to hers, pushing her foot against her own. _'Is she seriously trying to play footsies with me right now?'_ Hermione bit her tongue so she wouldn't lash out and simply pushed the blonde's foot away with her own, making a soft laugh slip from Fleur's lips.

Hermione let out a huff at Fleur's obvious amusement and when she felt the blonde's foot make its way back over to her own again she finally snapped. In one swift moment she lifted her foot and stomped the heel of her shoe down onto the Fleur's toes, effectively wiping the smile off of the foreigner's lips.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Fleur's face redden and it looked as if the cocky girl was holding her breath to stop herself from letting out any sounds of pain or discomfort.

_'Serves her right.'_ Hermione thought to herself with a smirk as Fleur bit her lip, looking down at her paper in an attempt to forget the pain shooting up her leg, originating at her toes.

There were a couple moments of silence before Hermione heard the sound of scribbling, paper tearing, and then the text on her book was blocked by a note written in neat cursive. She had to refrain from laughing when she read the words written by her French partner.

'That hurt!'

'Good.' Was Hermione's simple reply as she grinned and passed the note back.

She felt a laugh bubbling up in her chest when she saw Fleur's jaw drop and arctic eyes look at her with feigned hurt and betrayal. "Wow." Fleur mouthed at the young Gryffindor who just smiled and shrugged in response.

"And that does it for today class." Sirius' voice interrupted the two girls staring contest.

Hermione quickly grabbed her book and made a beeline for the door before Fleur could try to talk to her anymore, but the blonde was faster than she anticipated.

"'Ermione!" Fleur called out as she ran with a slight limp after the retreating bookworm.

Hermione let out a sigh as she paused in her steps. "Yes?" She raised an eyebrow as she turned and faced the still red faced Beauxbatons student.

"I 'ave missed a lot of classes, because of zis tournament. . ."

"I'm well aware of that." Hermione looked bored as she shifted to her other foot with her book held tightly to her chest.

"Oh?" Fleur seemed to perk up for reasons Hermione was unsure of. "Did you miss me?"

Hermione rolled her eyes as that insufferable confident gleam popped into Fleur's bright eyes. "Don't flatter yourself. It was just an observation."

"Of course." Fleur smiled knowingly before she waved off the subject. "Anyways, I was wondering eef you would let me borrow your notes."

"And why would I do that?" Hermione huffed. "Especially after that little stunt you pulled in there."

"Je suis désolé 'Ermione." Fleur had the decency to at least look like she felt bad for what she had done. "I was just playing around wiz you. I did not mean anyzing by eet."

"Well I didn't find it very amusing." Hermione put her nose up in the air. "You're already on very thin ice."

"Oui, I know." Fleur held up her hands as if to show she meant no harm. "I won't do eet again. I promise."

Hermione eyed the other girl warily for a moment before she let out a sigh and caved in to those pleading eyes. "Alright, fine, but I want my notes back by tomorrow."

"Or course." Fleur looked giddy as a smile lit up her face once more. "Please, let me walk you to lunch to make up for my 'orrible be'avior."

"Don't push it." Hermione glared at the blonde half-heartedly as she brushed past her.

"Fine. I will just awkwardly walk five paces behind you." Fleur let out a soft chuckle as she followed after the fiery Gryffindor. "I 'ave ze best view in all of 'Ogwarts back 'ere anyways." She shrugged as she let her eyes wander down to Hermione's legs and perfectly sculpted butt. She couldn't stop her grin from widening when Hermione looked over her shoulder at her in horror and slowed down her pace so Fleur was walking next to her.

"You're worse than Ginny." Hermione mumbled darkly as they made their way down the corridor.

"'Ermione Granger, you wound me." Fleur held her hand to her chest in mock pain.

"I can wound you more if you like." Hermione put on her fake sugary smile sending terrified chills running down Fleur's back. Her throbbing toes reminded her that Hermione Granger could definitely inflict pain on her if she so wished it. "Yeah, I didn't think so." Hermione grinned at how pale Fleur had become.

As they walked down the halls Hermione couldn't help but notice all of the stares they received as they passed, how quickly people would move out of the way for them, and when she observed someone staring a little too intently at her one sharp look from Fleur had them scurrying away. _'I suppose walking with Fleur does have some perks.'_

"Après vous." Fleur smiled as she opened the door to the dining hall.

"Thanks." Hermione murmured as she walked in and almost immediately noticed all eyes were on her and Fleur.

"'Ermione." Fleur said softly, pulling the blushing brunette's attention away from their prying audience. "Can I get zose notes after dinner?"

"Yeah, sure." Hermione rubbed the back of her head to hide her nerves. She really did detest being put under a microscrope.

"Great. I will see you zen." Fleur beamed at the golden girl before strutting to her table while Hermione did the same.

"What in the bloody hell was that!?" Ginny jumped down Hermione's throat the second she sat down next to her.

"What was what?" Hermione played stupid as she put some food on her plate.

"What was . . ." For once in her life Ginny seemed to be at a loss for words as she gaped at the brunette nonchalantly loading up her plate. "You just walked in with Fleur Delacour . . . the enemy!" She cried out.

"And?" Hermione looked at Ginny with innocent eyes as she bit into her toast.

Ginny just continued to gawk at the unperturbed prefect with her mouth hanging wide open before she finally snapped. "Did you have a stroke or something!?"

"I assure you Ginny, I'm fine." Hermoine rolled her eyes at how dramatic her friend could be.

"Did she bewitch you?" Ginny continued her inquisition without skipping a beat.

"Ginny!" Hermione finally put down her food to glare at the red head. "She just asked if she could borrow my notes while we went to lunch. Don't make a big deal out of it."

"And I'm sure she'll ask for a 'study session' next." Ginny glared at the blonde over her shoulder and vibrant blue locked onto dark green as Fleur licked the yogurt from the back of her spoon slowly before she winked in her direction. "She's taunting me 'Mione!" Ginny cried out, turning back to Hermione paying her no attention.

"You do know I'm not really your girlfriend right?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the flustered chaser.

"Of course I know that!" Ginny huffed, crossing her arms. "It's the principal of the matter! That girl has no respect." Ginny put her nose up in the air.

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but the jig is up." Hermione grinned at the surprised look on Ginny's face. "She knows it's a hoax and I'm sure everyone else does as well."

"What!?" Ginny abruptly stood up from her seat. "I loved you Hermione Granger and gave you everything while you ran around town with whatever pretty boy or girl caught your fancy!"

"Ginevra Weasley, what in the bloody Hell are you doing?" Hermione hissed through her teeth, her face turning a bright red when she noticed all eyes on them.

"Getting even." There was a subtle smirk on Ginny's face as she grabbed her pumpkin juice.

"Ginny . . ." Hermione started in a threatening tone, but her warning fell on deaf ears.

The dining hall was silent as a crypt as Ginny held her cup over Hermione's head and tipped her glass, completely dousing the golden girl's head in juice. "You should be ashamed of yourself Hermione Granger." Ginny threw her cup at the girl sitting there with her mouth hanging wide open in disbelief before storming out.

"Would you like a napkin?" Came Luna's dreamy voice as she held out her own cloth to Hermione.

Luna's question seemed to be the straw that broke the camel's back as Hermione stood up. "I'm going to kill her this time. I mean it." Hermione growled as she went running after the hysterically laughing red head down the hall.

_**"It looks like the scales are starting to tip in you favor."**_ Veronique spoke in an aloof voice, even though she felt anything but that.

_**"It would seem so."**_ Fleur replied with a smirk.

/

Later that evening Fleur found herself intently watching the brunette from across the room once more, making sure she didn't miss her opportunity to talk to the prefect and get the notes she had already received from Veronique. She felt her Veela humming with excitement at the prospect of making another, hopefully more successful move, on its prey tonight. She had to hide the amused chuckle from bubbling out of her throat when she saw Ginny sit down next to Hermione who proceeded to scowl and stand up when the red head tried to talk to her.

"Come on 'Mione, don't be like that." Ginny pouted at the irritated girl packing up her things. "I was just playing around."

"You're luck she didn't hex you into next week." Ron laughed at his sister.

"Do you have any idea how long it took to get that pumpkin juice out of my hair?" Hermione finally broke her silence and glared at her friend who was trying to contain her laughter. "It was sticky and disgusting!"

"I'm sorry 'Mione." Ginny put on her best puppy dog face. "I was a right prat for doing that . . ." Ginny looked down and mumbled. "Even if it was hilarious."

"What was that?" Hermione gritted her teeth, gripping her book tightly.

"N-nothing."

"Thought so." Hermione huffed before she exited the hall with a certain blonde hot on her heels.

"I 'ope you did not forget about zose notes Mademoiselle Granger." Came a soft voice behind the irritated Gryffidnor as she headed up the stairway.

"Bloody Hell." Hermione stopped in her steps, turning to face the veela a few stairs below her. "I forgot them in my room."

"Zat is no problem." Fleur put on that insufferable smile Hermione had grown accustomed to. "I shall accompany you to your chambers eef you don't mind."

Hermione took a moment to regard the blonde before she shrugged. "Sure."

"S'il vous plaît." Fleur grabbed Hermione's book from her arms. "Let me carry zat."

Hermione had a flash of déjà vu at the Veela's gesture and had to refrain from rolling her eyes. "I am perfectly capable of carrying my own books."

"I don't doubt zat." Fleur smirked as she walked next to the bookworm. "It's ze least I can do zough for you letting me borrow your notes."

"How chivalrous." Hermione scoffed as they ascended the steps of the moving staircase.

"Still testy after ze events at lunch?" Fleur smirked as Hermione whirled around to glare at her.

"I am not testy." She growled.

"Non." Fleur's smirk widened into a delighted smile. "Of course not."

Hermione just turned back around with her trademark scowl firmly in place as she headed towards the fat lady portrait, mumbling something along the lines of "Ungrateful."

"Password?" The fat lady raised an eyebrow at the unlikely pair.

"Caput Draconis." Hermione replied and the portrait swung open.

Fleur took in the warm common room filled with giggling students whose eyes shifted in their direction the second they entered. She went to follow Hermione up the stairs, but was stopped dead in her tracks when Hermione turned around and promptly took her book out of her hands.

"You stay here." Hermione pointed her finger right in front of Fleur's nose, almost making the foreigner go cross eyed.

"As you wish." Fleur smiled innocently as Hermione turned back around to stomp up the steps.

Fleur watched the witch for a moment before she herself turned around, leaned against the wall and crossed her arms, looking as disinterested and cold as possible as she discreetly looked around the room, taking in the architecture. The Gryffindor room wasn't nearly as elegant as anything at her academy, but there was a certain 'homey' feeling to the atmosphere. She decided in that moment she liked it and could see herself lounging on the couch while Hermione read a book by the fire. _'What a silly notion.'_ Fleur inwardly scolded herself for getting even slightly sentimental.

"Here you go." Hermione's voice cut through her thoughts as she roughly shoved the papers into her hands.

"Merci Mademoiselle." Fleur smiled once more to show how unaffected she was by the Gryffindor's sour mood. In fact, Fleur found it quite endearing.

"It's fine." Hermione waved her off as she started to head back up to her room.

"Eet ees still early." Fleur spoke up before Hermione was out of sight, making the young prodigy stop and regard her. "Per'aps you could show me around ze castle. I 'ave yet to be given a proper tour."

Hermione was quiet for a moment, reading the other girl down the stairs from her. The exchange student was obviously up to something and Hermione knew this spelled trouble, however they didn't call her the brightest witch of her age for nothing. "Sure." A smile formed on Hermoine's face as she walked back down the steps, thoroughly surprising Fleur; she had expected some resistance from her prey, but it seemed Hermione was warming up to her.

"Great." Fleur hid her surprise and strolled with Hermione out of the common room.

"As you already know, these are the changing staircases." Hermione commented as they walked higher and higher, zig zagging from staircase to staircase. "Hogwarts is famous for it. They say they have it like this in case there is ever an attack the intruders would get lost and we would have advantage."

"Intéressant." Fleur mumbled as they almost reached the top of one of the highest staircases. She turned to regard Hermione, but found her sliding down the rail of the stairs as they changed. She jumped off right before the last bit of it detached from the ground, leaving Fleur confused and alone. "'Ermoine Granger!" Fleur cried out as the staircase moved her further away from the laughing Gryiffindor. There was obviously a reason why her and Ginny were friends. "Where ees zis staircase taking me!?" She couldn't help but laugh as well at the predicament she had been put in. She should have known better, but couldn't resist an opportunity to get the prefect alone.

Hermione cupped her hands around her mouth so the Veela could hear her as she shouted back. "I haven't the foggiest!"

Fleur just laughed and rolled her eyes as she stepped off the steps as Hermione's laughter faded until she was gone. _'Now 'ow do I get back.'_ Fleur tapped her chin in thought as she looked at the door in front of her, then back to the staircase changing direction once more. _'Perhaps finding a staircase that doesn't move behind one of zese doors ees a safer bet.'_

Fleur opened the door in front of her, stepping into the dark quiet room, but the quiet was broken by a low growl to her left. The young champion gulped as she turned and came face to face with a giant black dog with three heads, breathing right in her face, baring its sharp teeth.

"Pardon. I must 'ave entered ze wrong room by mistake." She held her hands up as she slowly backed towards the door behind her. "I will just . . ." She started, but the giant dog lunged at her, all three heads snapping at her as she jumped out the door and slammed it closed in its snarling face.

With her heart pounding in her chest and her breathing ragged Fleur pressed her back to the door with wide blue eyes. "Zat girl ees going to be ze deaz of me."

/

The next day marked the first official visit to Hogsmeade since the foreigners had arrived and the halls were buzzing with excitement. The students were beyond thrilled to get out of the dreary castle, take a break from their studies, and get to see a little bit of the outside world. Everyone except Hermione Granger.

"Come on 'Mione!" Ginny stomped her foot as Hermione lay on her bed with her nose stuck in a book. "It will be fun!"

"I've been to Hogsmeade a million times Ginny and I would much rather get ahead of my studies." Hermione replied without looking up.

"If you go . . . I'll . . . I'll buy you a new book." Ginny grinned when Hermione's eyes finally peaked over the pages and looked at her. "And . . ." Ginny bit her lip, trying to sweeten the pot even more.

"I'm listening." Hermione raised an eyebrow.

"All the butterbeer you want!"

"Fine." Hermione snapped the book shut and stood up. "But I'm still mad at you."

"If it will make you feel better you can dump a whole pitcher of butterbeer over my head." Ginny's grin widened when Hermione laughed.

"Careful Ginevra Weasley." Hermione smiled. "I might just take you up on that offer."

/

Fleur stood outside of Gladrags Wizardwear, casually leaning against the cold stone in her dark skinny jeans, white v-neck and tight black leather jacket with her arms crossed. She usually enjoyed shopping with Odette and Veronique, but she found her tastes lied elsewhere these days. Behind dark black ray bans she discreetly scouted the area, looking for familiar brown locks, but much to her chagrin the golden girl was nowhere to be found.

_**"I need your opinion on a dress."**_ Came Veronique's voice as she popped her head out of the shop door.

_**"Ask Odette."**_ Fleur replied cooly as she kept her eyes peeled.

_**"I did, but I want a second opinion on it."**_ Veronique huffed.

_**"Ask one of the employees."** _

_**"What is wrong with you?"**_ Veronique growled as she stepped outside and invaded Fleur's vision. _**"You usually love shopping with us! This is the closest thing we've had to fun since we arrived in this horrible place."**_

"I'll meet up with you in ten minutes 'Mione." Came Ginny's voice from across the way. "I'm just going to grab some supplies for my broom real quick."

A small smile formed on Fleur's face when she looked over Veronique's shoulder and saw Hermione entering the book shop across the way. _'Perfect.'_ Fleur pushed off the wall and walked past her fuming friend to stalk after the prefect.

_**"Seriously Fleur!?"**_ Veronique yelled after the blonde, but Fleur just ignored her and entered the shop.

She took off her glasses and looked around to see Hermione going into the magical creatures section. Her smile widened as she followed, briefly taking note of the soft 50's song being played in the store.

**Earth Angel,**  
 **Earth Angel,**  
 **Will you be mine?**  
 **My darling dear,**  
 **Love you all the time.**  
 **I'm just a fool,**  
 **A fool in love with you**.

With careful footsteps Fleur followed the young prodigy and when she reached the bookshelf she peaked around the corner. She bit her lower lip as her eyes raked up Hermione's long toned tan legs to the tight jean shorts hugging her hips to the black spaghetti strap top that clung to her perfect curves. _'Ow can she look so beautiful in somezing so simple?'_ Fleur sighed to herself as she ducked over to the isle to the right of magical creatures.

She promptly pulled out a random book and pretended to be enthralled as she glanced at Hermione out of the corner of her eye.

**Earth Angel,**   
**Earth Angel,**   
**The one I adore,**   
**Love you forever**   
**And evermore.**   
**I'm just a fool,**   
**A fool in love with you.**

Hermione was completely oblivious to Fleur's presence, but as she ran her fingertips over the spines of books, she chanced a look to the right only to see Fleur seemingly lost in a book.

When Fleur finally looked up arctic blue met with bright amber. Hermione couldn't help but roll her eyes or hide the small smile that formed on her lips at the contagious grin that spread across the veela's flawless face.

**I fell for you**  
 **And I knew**  
 **The vision of your love, loveliness.**  
 **I hope and I pray**  
 **That someday**  
 **I'll be the vision of your hap, happiness**.

Realizing that she was smiling back at the veela Hermione quickly put her face back to neutral as she turned and continued to browse through titles, desperately trying to ignore the persistent girl.

Her eyes scanned various titles, but once again blue eyes caught her attention on the opposite side of the shelf in between the rows. She grabbed a book off the shelf and Fleur pulled one off the opposite side so they could see each other clearly. There was a twinkle in those icy eyes that screamed mischief, but Hermione was not going to play the champions games.

**Oh, Earth Angel,**   
**Earth Angel,**   
**Please be mine?**   
**My darling dear,**   
**Love you all the time.**   
**I'm just a fool,**   
**A fool in love with you.**

With a huff she shoved the book back into its place and was met by a soft laugh on the opposite side and the sound of the other book being put back. She continued down the row while Fleur kept the same stride so they were consistently walking next to each other. When they finally reached the end she was greeted by the sight of Fleur leaning her shoulder against the shelf with her arms crossed.

"Looking for more books on veelas?" Fleur smirked and Hermione's face reddened at being caught looking into the creatures.

"You know, just because I'm being civil with you, it doesn't mean you can stalk me." Hermione put her nose in the air.

"Who said I was?" Fleur raised an eyebrow at the huffy Gryffindor. "I need to find a book on ze tournament and you just so 'appened to be 'ere."

"Right." Hermione scoffed as she walked down another isle with Fleur hot on her heels.

"Eef you 'ave any questions about veelas you can just ask me 'Ermione." Fleur smiled as Hermione picked up another book, trying to ignore her. "I am sure I could be more useful zen some out dated book."

"I have no interest in veelas." Hermione grumbled as she opened up the book.

"Of course not." Fleur smiled knowingly as she grabbed a book and absentmindedly flipped through the pages. "You know . . . you almost got me killed ze ozer day."

"Oh really?" Hermione scoffed as she ran her finger down the page. "How?"

"A zree 'eaded dog tried to eat me."

"Fluffy?" Hermione laughed as she snapped her book shut and looked at the pouting blonde.

"Eet 'as a name!?" Fleur looked incredulously at the laughing bookworm.

"Yes. Harry, Ron, and I had a little run in with him our first year. He's harmless once you put him to sleep."

"You encountered zat zing when you were eleven?" Fleur's eyebrows rose high up on her head.

"Yeah." Hermione shrugged as if it was nothing which in retrospect it was compared to everything she and the boys had been through.

"Color me impressed Mademoiselle Granger." Fleur grinned. "My question zough eez what kind of school 'as creatures like zat hiding on ze grounds in ze first place?"

"Hogwarts." Hermione chuckled. "And believe me, there are worse things than Fluffy lurking on the grounds."

"Great." Fleur sighed. "I guess you will 'ave to give me a real tour next time so I can avoid zose zings."

"And where would the fun be in that?" Hermione smiled cheekily at the veela.

"You are too cruel 'Ermione Granger." Fleur shook her head with a soft laugh.

"Hey 'Mione! Where are you!?" Came Ginny's loud voice. "Are you done nerding out yet . . . hey, what are you doing with Delacour?" Ginny glared at the blonde as she rounded the corner.

"Mademoiselle Granger was just 'elping me find a book." Fleur looked at her nails in a bored manor.

"Oh yeah? Where's the book?" Ginny redirected her glare to Hermione who was nervously shifting from foot to foot.

"Eet was not 'ere." Fleur shrugged.

"Right." Ginny rolled her eyes. "Well anyways, Harry and Ron are waiting at the three broomsticks for us. Let's go 'Mione." Ginny growled as she grabbed Hermione's elbow and practically dragged the prefect outside.

"That was completely unnecessary Ginny." Hermione yanked her arm out of her friend's grasp as they headed into the three broomsticks. "I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

"Well, it sure didn't look like it." Ginny scoffed.

"Are you two having a row again?" Ron frowned when he saw the scowl on both of the girls faces.

"Your sister is just being a prat." Hermione huffed as she and Ginny sat down.

"And Hermione is being an idiot." Ginny shot back making both the boys raise their brows.

"I don't think Hermione is capable of being an . . . idiot." Harry was the first to speak up, feeling nervous for the young chaser.

"Well she was." Ginny glared over at the seething brunette. "She was hanging out with Fleur Delacour."

"One, I was not 'hanging out' with her." Hermione spoke through gritted teeth. "Two, even if I was I don't see how it's any of your business."

"You're like a sister to me 'Mione." Ginny frowned. "And I don't trust that girl."

"I don't fully trust her either, but she's not as bad as that letter made her out to be." Hermione sighed.

"She seems alright to me." Harry shrugged.

"Yeah and not to mention she's bloody gorgeous." Ron's eyes glossed over as Fleur and her posse entered the pub.

"Speak of the devil and she shall arrive." Ginny rolled her eyes as the girls took a seat at the bar.

"We should invite them over." Ron smiled dreamily.

"Absolutely not." Ginny and Hermione said at the same time. They paused for a moment, looked at each other, and then proceeded to burst into a fit of laughter.

"I'm sorry 'Mione." Ginny sighed as she rubbed the back of her neck. "I just don't want her messing with you."

"It's okay Ginny. I know you're just looking out for my best interest, but you have to trust that I know what I'm doing."

"I know, I know." Ginny sighed.

"On that note, I'll go get us the first round." Harry smiled as he started to stand up.

"Don't be silly Harry. I'll get it." Hermione stood up and headed to the bar to place their order. "A pitcher of butterbeer please." Hermione leaned over the bar, unknowingly giving anyone looking a nice view. A couple Beuxbatons girls noticed and a brunette got up to talk to her, but one stern look from Fleur sent the girl cowering back to her seat.

_**"Possessive are we?"**_ Veronique raised an eyebrow at the scowl on Fleur's face.

_**"I have no idea what you're talking about."**_ Fleur flipped her hair as she headed over to Hermione and placed her hand on the small of her back while Hermione was getting ready to pay the bartender. "S'il vous plaît, allow me to take care of zis."

"I got it. Don't worry." Hermione grumbled as she removed Fleur's hand from her back.

"I insist. Eet eez ze least I can do since you let me borrow your notes or you can consider eet a peace offering." Fleur smiled.

"Fine." Hermione sighed as she put away her money and grabbed the pitcher. "Thanks Fleur." She gave the blonde a small smile before she went back to her friends who were watching with wide eyes.

"This should cover zeir bill non?" Fleur asked the bartender as she pulled out more than enough money to cover ten pitchers of butterbeer.

"Y-yeah." The man blushed as he took the money.

"See what I'm talking about!?" Ginny hissed to the boys. "She is all over 'Mione!"

"I mean, I don't see why you're turning her down." Ron looked to the brunette. "She looks like a Goddess, pays for your things, and for some reason is crazy about you."

"I'm just going to gloss over your back handed compliment and say it takes more than that to get me interested." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"If you're so interested in her mate, you should go ask her out." Harry grinned at how red Ron's face became.

"No way. She's way out of my league."

"Mademoiselle Granger!" Came a soft voice and in popped a younger looking Fleur. "I was 'oping to run into you. Do you zink I could have a word in private?"

"Uh . . . sure." Hermione looked at her equally confused friends as she put down her drink and walked to a quiet corner with the young blonde whose sisters eyes were locked onto the pair.

_**"This does not look good."**_ Odette spoke quietly to her fuming alpha.

"For ze brightest witch of your age you sure don't know 'ow to listen to good advice when eet eez given." Gabrielle immediately went in on the baffled Gryffindor.

"Good advice?" Hermione raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, I don't even know who you are."

"I am Fleur's little sister and also ze one who gave you zat note." Gabrielle huffed.

A look of shock crossed Hermione's face. "You? You're the one who wrote me that note warning me about Fleur?"

"Oui. I zought you would be able to figure zat out for yourself, but eet seems I 'ave overestimated you."

"Why did you write that note to me? I don't understand." Hermione frowned at how brash the young student was being. "Fleur doesn't seem to be nearly as bad as you described her."

"You do not really know 'er." Gabrielle snapped. "She eez disgracing our family acting ze way she does. You 'ave no idea 'ow many broken people she 'as left in 'er wake."

"Well maybe she has changed." Hermione jumped to the blonde's defense for reasons she was unsure of.

"You don't 'onestly believe zat do you?" Gabrielle rolled her eyes. "You're smarter zan zat."

"I . . ." Hermione stopped midsentence; she was at a complete loss for words.

"I will warn you one more time Mademoiselle Granger." Gabrielle spoke in a cold tone. "Do not trust 'er. Eef you choose to ignore my advice zen my conscience ees clear."

With those last words Gabrielle turned sharply on her heal and exited the pub leaving a completely perplexed Gryffindor in her wake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gabrielle was the one who wrote the note! Dun dun dunnnnn. Anyone surprised? :D I struggled for a long time as to who would be the one to write the note, because I didn't want the author of the note to be too obvious :(


	8. Heavy Dirty Soul

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so glad that everyone is enjoying this fic :D Thank you to everyone taking the time to read. I really appreciate it :) Now, as you guys can probably tell, the inspiration for this chapter came from the song Heavydirtysoul by Twenty One Pilots. Ok, I'll shut up now so you guys can read the new chapter. Maybe we'll find out why Gabrielle sold her sister out :3  
> As always, friendly reminder, French is in bold and italics while thoughts are in italics

Fleur stood stalk still in her spot as she watched her little sister glide out of the pub with her head held high. Her gaze shifted back to Hermione who was now looking at her with an unreadable expression on her face.

_**"Merde."**_ Fleur mumbled under her breath. _**"It was Gabrielle . . ."**_

_**"I didn't think the little shit had it in her."**_ Veronique shrugged; she would be lying if she said she wasn't pleased with how things were turning out. It was rare Fleur ever lost a bet to her and she was so looking forward to gaining access to the heiress' most treasured possession.

_**"What are you going to do?"**_ Odette looked at her stunned alpha with worried eyes.

Fleur chewed on her lower lip as Hermione went back to her friends with a frown on her face. _'Of course zis would 'appen when I was just starting to make progress wiz 'er.'_

_**"Fleur?"**_ Odette prodded further.

_**"I don't know."**_ Fleur huffed as she crossed her arms. Every fiber of her being wanted to go after her little sister, slam her against a wall, and demand that she go back and make things right with Hermione, but she knew that if she left now it would be as good as admitting she was guilty to whatever Gabrielle told the young Gryffindor and there was no way Gabrielle would do such a thing. Her little sister is just as stubborn as she is, if not more.

_**"You could always just . . ."**_ Veronique danced her fingertips up Fleur's arm with a coy smile on her face. _**"Give up."**_

Hermione glanced over and saw the contact between the two foreigners and for a brief second Fleur saw a flash of something that she had never seen in her honey eyes before.

_**"Never."**_ Fleur growled as she swatted Veronique's hand away from her arm and Hermione's attention was pulled back to her friends.

"Come on 'Mione! What did Fleur's clone talk to you about?" Ginny whined as the bookworm sipped her butterbeer.

"I already told you Ginny." Hermione glared at her nosey friend. "She was just asking for help with homework."

"Bullshit." Ron surprised the group by speaking up. "She looked bloody pissed."

"Fine, if I tell you lot will you drop it?" Hermione sighed as she put down her beverage.

"No promises." Harry grinned.

"You guys are bloody insane." Hermione grumbled. "If you must know that was Fleur's little sister. She was the one who wrote me that note."

Ron spat out his drink at the admission. "What!?"

"Must you always be so dramatic Ronald? Or does that run in your family?" Hermione sighed as she wiped up the mess he made on the table with a napkin.

"What did she say?" Harry frowned.

"She was just upset that I don't seem to be following her advice." Hermione slumped back in her seat. "I suppose she thinks Fleur is getting to me."

"Is she?" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"Of course not." Hermione sat up straighter, clearly ruffled by Harry's simple question.

"Liar." Ginny scoffed as she took a drink of her own butterbeer. "You should have seen them in the book store. They were practically eye fucking each other. If I hadn't come in who knows what would have happened."

"Ginerva Weasley!" Hermione's cheeks started to heat up at the red head's comment. "I was not . . ." She struggled for a moment with the crude way Ginny put her and Fleur's interaction. "Eye fucking her."

"Look! She's blushing!" Ginny jumped up and down in her seat, pointing at the bookworm who was increasingly becoming redder. "That's as good as admitting guilt!"

Hermione quickly snatched Ginny's finger in her hand and started to bend it back a little, making the red head whimper. "The only thing I'm going to be guilty of is murder if you don't stop provoking me." Hermione glared at the cowering chaser.

When Hermione finally released Ginny's finger, Ginny promptly cradled the injured digit in her other hand, looking like a kicked puppy. "You didn't have to bend it back like that 'Mione."

"Touchy subject?" Harry grinned behind his butterbeer. He almost spat out the liquid when Hermione kicked him on the shin under the table.

"Are you all done?" Hermione looked threateningly at the group. "Or do you have something to add Ronald?"

"No." Ron gulped and shook his head vehemently; he didn't have a death wish.

/

Later that night Fleur stalked down the halls of the Beauxbatons carriage looking from left to right for just a glimpse of bright blonde hair that mirrored her own; she was out for blood. When she came upon said person casually lounging in a seat reading a book she felt her anger intensify.

_**"You have some nerve!"**_ Fleur growled as she yanked the book out of her little sisters hands and tossed it to the side.

_**"Me?"**_ Gabrielle raised an eyebrow at her fuming sibling; she was clearly not intimidated by her alpha's presence.

_**"Yes you!"**_ Fleur poked her sister in the chest hard to emphasize her point. _**"Where do you get off stirring up trouble like that?"**_

_**"I think the only one worrying about getting off is you Fleur."**_ Gabrielle rolled her eyes as she picked up her book and put it back only to be turned around and shoved against the bookshelf.

_**"You have no right interfering with me and Hermione."**_ Fleur gritted her teeth.

_**"And you have no right trying to corrupt that girl!"**_ Gabrielle shot back, meeting Fleur's icy glare with her own. _**"You are a disgrace to our family. You will run our clan into the ground when you take over."**_

_**"You sound just like mother."**_ Fleur scoffed as she crossed her arms. _**"Who ever said I wanted to run the clan anyway?"**_

_**"What happened to you Fleur?"**_ Gabrielle frowned at the arrogance her sister exuded. _**"You've turned into someone I don't recognize anymore."**_

Fleur became silent as her eyes shifted to the floor and for the first time in a very long time she felt a feeling of guilt and regret wash over her. She often looked in the mirror and scrutinized herself, wondering what really lies behind her cold gaze. She had gotten so good at being this cold, selfish person she had forgotten she was capable of being someone else.

_**"Whether you like it or not you're going to be the next in line to run the clan. It's not a matter of choice, it's a matter of duty. I used to be proud of the person you were, but now I don't care to be associated with you."**_ Gabrielle pushed past her stunned older sibling. _**"And for the record, what you're doing to Hermione, what you did to all of those other people, is wrong."**_

_**"I'm not doing anything to her."**_ Fleur finally looked up from the ground to glare at her little sister's back.

_**"Oh?"**_ Gabrielle raised an eyebrow as she turned around. _**"So you're not trying to bed her? Your interest in her is pure?"**_

_**"I . . ."**_ Fleur looked off to the side as she scrambled for an answer. _'No . . . yes . . .'_ _ **"I don't know."**_

_**"You don't know?"**_ Gabrielle scoffed. _**"I find that hard to believe. Mark my words Fleur, with the way you are now, you are going to ruin that girl. I just hope she has the good sense to stay away."**_

_**"I'm not going to ruin her."**_ Fleur clenched her hands into tight fists. _**"You don't know me at all."**_

_**"You're right."**_ Gabrielle shrugged. _**"I don't, but neither does she. Hermione deserved to be warned and I'm not sorry for doing it."**_

_**"Of course you're not."**_ Fleur mumbled as she slumped against the bookshelf. _**"What did you tell her?"**_

_**"The truth."** _

_**"And that is?"**_ Fleur raised an eyebrow.

_**"Don't play dumb Fleur, you're not good at it."**_ Gabrielle rolled her eyes. _**"You know what the truth is."**_

Fleur had no response to give her little sister; deep down she did know the truth but was far too afraid to admit it. She was aware of the carnage she left in her wake but refused to deal with it. Instead, she stuffed it down so far away that she would never have to look at the horrendous things she had done.

_**"By the way, I heard your fuck buddy is looking for you."**_ Gabrielle did the Delacour hair flip as she headed out the door. _**"You wouldn't want to keep her waiting."**_

_**"Fuck off Gabby."**_ Fleur growled as she breezed past her little sister and headed back to her room where her two friends were waiting.

_**"Don't you two have anything better to do than hang out in my chambers?"**_ Fleur sighed as she rubbed her temples and sat down on the edge of her bed.

_**"Nope."**_ Veronique smirked as she inhaled some pixie dust from her necklace. _**"Want a bump? It looks like you've had a rough day."**_ The raven haired girl scooted closer to the upset veela, but was promptly turned down.

_**"You know I don't do that shit."**_ Fleur glared at the necklace that was held out to her.

_**"Oh yeah, I forgot."**_ Veronique grinned as she snapped the lid to the necklace shut. _**"Did you talk to that little brat?"**_

_**"You mean Gabrielle?"**_ Odette frowned at the way Veronique spoke about Fleur's sibling.

_**"Yes Odette."**_ Veronique rolled her eyes. _**"Gabrielle."**_

_**"Yes."**_ Fleur grumbled. _**"She's still as stubborn as ever."**_

_**"She needs to be put in her place."**_ Veronique grumbled. _**"She is going to continue to get in your way even when you take over the clan."**_

_**"I don't want to think about the clan right now."**_ Fleur groaned.

_**"She just misses you."**_ Odette jumped in, making both the girls look at her curiously.

_**"It sure doesn't seem that way."**_ Fleur muttered. _**"That girl hates me."**_

_**"That's not true."**_ Odette shook her head and moved to sit next to her alpha. _**"She misses her sister she used to spend her days at the sea with collecting shells and playing in the water."**_

_**"Awe, how touching."**_ Veronique mocked in a sickly sweet voice as she pinched Fleur's cheek. _**"Wittle Gabby misses her big sister."**_

_**"Knock it off."**_ Fleur growled as she pushed her laughing friend's hand away. _**"How do you know all of this anyway Odette?"**_ Fleur eyed the red head suspiciously.

_**"I-it's just a guess."**_ Odette blushed.

_**"That's an oddly specific guess."**_ Veronique raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow at the nervous veela.

_**"You're lying."**_ Fleur's gaze became cold and commanding when she saw her underling looking shifty.

_**"Are you two fucking?"**_ Veronique's eyes lit up at the prospect of some good gossip and mayhem.

_**"N-no!"**_ Odette's bright eyes widened at the accusation, trying to look as nonthreatening as possible to her alpha was looking more pissed by the second.

_**"You better not."**_ Fleur seethed. _**"You know my little sister is off limits and you know what I will do if you try anything."**_

_**"I swear it's nothing like that Fleur."**_ Odette began to perspire lightly. _**"We just talk every now and then and are friendly."**_

_**"How friendly?"**_ Veronique smirked.

_**"Stop."**_ Fleur snapped her gaze to the mischievous raven-haired girl. _**"You're not helping."**_

_**"I would never do anything to betray your trust."**_ Odette tried to appear as innocent as possible; Fleur was already riled up and the route this conversation was going was not helping.

Fleur turned her attention back to Odette and looked the girl up and down, trying to decide if she believed her or not. _**"What do you two talk about?"**_ She finally spoke when she saw her silence starting to unsettle the red head. She had to admit she was slightly curious about what the two talked about; she hardly remembered what it was like to have a civil conversation with her little sister anymore.

_**"Believe it or not, we talk about you mostly."**_ Odette smiled when she noticed her alpha's shift in mood. _**"She's the one who brings you up, always curious as to what you're up to."**_

_**"How nosey."**_ Veronique grumbled.

_**"Shut up or leave."**_ Fleur glared at the bored girl.

_**"Fine."**_ Veronique shrugged as she stood up. _**"Hit me up when you want to have some fun."**_ She threw a wink in Fleur's direction, making the blonde cringe before she made her exit.

Once the devilish girl left the room Fleur's hard exterior broke and she started to play with the hem of her dress as she chewed on her lower lip, seeming to struggle with what she wanted to ask next.

_**"Is everything okay Fleur?"**_ Odette scooted closer to the blonde as she watched her battle herself.

Fleur seemed to find her resolve as she looked up and locked eyes with her concerned friend. _**"Will you tell me what Gabrielle has been up to? How she has been?"**_

A smile spread across the red heads face when she heard Fleur's request. _**"Of course."**_

/

Sunday passed through uneventfully and much to Fleur's chagrin she didn't even catch a glimpse of the bookworm at any of their meals. She wondered if Hermione was avoiding her once again, but hoped it was temporary. She knew Hermione couldn't avoid her forever seeing as they had multiple classes together and for once found herself feeling a little excited and nervous at the same time as she headed to potions.

Fleur arrived early in hopes of seeing Hermione so she could get a chance to talk to her even if it was for a second, but once again the veela was let down when she saw the room empty. She let out a sigh as she took her seat in the back and impatiently tapped her nails on the desk in front of her while she kept a careful eye on the door.

She watched as students piled in, but still no Hermione. The young Gryffindor was never late so if she didn't show it would be a major shock. _'Ees she sick or somezing?'_

Right as Fleur thought that Hermione walked into the classroom with her book held tightly to her chest. She seemed to scan the room for a minute and when her amber eyes swept over to the young champion Fleur felt her veela jump with excitement, but the feeling was short lived. Almost as soon as their eyes met, they were disconnected again and Hermione strode over to the open seat next to . . . _'Viktor Krum!? You 'ave to be kidding me!'_ Fleur inwardly grumbled to herself.

Hermione had played with the idea of sitting with Fleur seeing as Harry got approved through Dumbledore to get out of his classes to practice today, but she had promised Viktor a couple weeks ago that she would partner up with him at some point. Plus, she wasn't so sure how she felt about the veela at the moment. She had been going back and forth on the matter in her mind for the past two days. Fleur had briefly mentioned her family, her mother to be precise, and how she disapproved of her art. It was entirely possible that her little sister was the same way and there was some bad blood between them that would make the younger Delacour say such things to her. _'Or she could really be looking out for my best interest . . . but Fleur doesn't seem to be those things . . . at least not all the time . . . Ugh! This is going to give me a bloody headache.'_

"Hermy-own?" Viktor looked just as confused as Fleur by the brunette's unexpected presence. "Vere is Harry? Isn't he your usual partner?"

"Oh, he got today off so he could practice for the tournament." Hermione waved off his confusion as she unpacked her bag.

"Oh, I thought you vould . . ." He started but seemed to think better of what he was going to say.

"You thought I would what?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.

_'I thought you vould partner with that nasty veela.'_ Viktor thought to himself but once again decided to keep his opinions to himself. "Nothing. You just took me by surprise." He smiled. "It is a pleasant surprise though, of course."

"Well, I did promise I would partner with you when I was given the chance." She smiled back.

Someone cleared their throat next to them and tapped the brunette on her shoulder. "Excusez-moi."

"Oh." Hermione turned to see Fleur standing next to her with papers in hand. "Hey Fleur. What's up?"

"I 'ave your notes and wanted to return zem to you." The blonde held out the papers to Hermione.

"Oh, thanks." Hermione tried not to grimace as she took the notes from her would be friend. "I totally forgot about it."

"Zank you for lending zem to me. Zey were very zourough." Fleur smiled as she put her hands behind her back, nervously rocking back and forth on her heals while trying to ignore the nasty glare Viktor was giving her behind Hermione's back.

"It's no problem."

"I was actually wondering eef you would like to partner up wiz me today seeing as 'Arry eesn't 'ere." Fleur chewed on her lower lip out of habit. "I 'ave some zings I wanted to discuss wiz you."

"I would, but I already promised I would be Viktor's partner if I was given the chance." _'Plus, I'm not quite sure what to think of you right now.'_ "Sorry." Hermione smiled apologetically at the veela.

"Eet ees fine." Fleur waved off Hermione's apology even though on the inside she was livid at the smug look that crossed the Bulgarian seeker's face. "Per'aps we can speak later."

"Yeah, maybe." Hermione shrugged as she went back to setting up her desk.

Fleur just nodded her head, trying to keep the smile on her face as she turned around and headed back to her desk. The veela inside of her was absolutely furious and inconsolable at the cold dismissal. Just like always with the golden girl, she took one step forward and two back. _'Ow am I ever going to make progress when ozers keep getting in ze way?'_ She inwardly groaned to herself.

It was absolutely impossible for Fleur to focus on anything other than Hermione and Viktor the entire class. She tapped her quill on her parchment while her random partner did all of the work for the potion as she admired Hermione's slender neck when she put her long brown locks up in a ponytail.

"No, no, it's Her-my-oh-nee." Hermione spoke slowly as she sat face to face with the dark-haired seeker who was trying his hardest to properly pronounce her name.

"Her-my-oh-ninny."

Hermione finally burst into a fit of giggles at the deadly serious look he bore as he completely slaughtered her name. "Close enough." She smiled and his face mirrored the same smile at the Gryffindor's obvious amusement.

Fleur just about snapped her quill in half when she saw Hermione laughing a genuine laugh at something the vile Bulgarian said or did and saw him smile back. _'I sure 'ope I will get to duel zat brute during ze first task. A broken nose or somezing will surely wipe zat smug look off of 'is face.'_ She thought darkly to herself as she watched the pair continue to converse and work together seamlessly.

_**'Mark my words Fleur, with the way you are now, you are going to ruin that girl.'**_ Gabrielle's voice flitted through Fleur's head and only added fuel to the fire that was now raging in the young champion's chest. Those words kept playing on repeat like a broken record as she observed Hermione and her bright smile directed at someone else. She pondered over the truth of those words and if she was really capable of breaking the young prodigy. _**'So you're not trying to bed her? Your interest in her is pure?'**_ Gabrielle's voice broke through her thoughts once more, leaving Fleur with more questions than answers. She was entirely unsure at this point what in the world was going on, what she was feeling, and why she was failing so badly. A big part of her wanted to bed her and claim Hermione Granger for her own, but there was another part of her which wanted other things she had told herself she would never want again. It was usually very easy to silence that quiet part of herself, but that quiet voice was starting to become bolder and louder. _'What a useless line of zought.'_ Fleur inwardly scolded herself as she finally pulled her gaze away from Hermione and Viktor.

She was more than relieved when class finally finished and was the first to snap her book shut and exit the classroom without so much as a glance back in Hermione's direction.

/

Later that day Hermione found herself outside dueling with Harry per his request. She was slightly confused seeing as he was just as good, if not better, at dueling than she was, but she supposed he was being careful for once in his life. She was grateful that he was wising up and also for the distraction it supplied her from the other champion.

"Stupefy!"

Hermione got hit square in the chest and went flying to the ground when her eyes once again glossed over and looked out to the distance. _'Okay, so maybe I'm still distracted.'_ She inwardly sighed as she slowly got up and rubbed her sore limbs.

"Is everything alright 'Mione? You seem kind of . . . distracted lately." Harry frowned as he walked over to his friend.

"Everything's fine Harry. You just caught me off guard is all."

"You sure about that?" He raised an eyebrow with a knowing twinkle in his eye.

"I'm starting to think you didn't ask me out here to duel Harry." Hermione eyed him suspiciously as a grin spread across his face.

"Alright, you caught me." He held up his hands. "I just thought you might want to talk is all. We haven't seen much of each other because of this tournament. I mean, I didn't even know you fancied Fleur."

"Whoever said I fancy her?" Hermione crossed her arms defensively.

"No one." He laughed as he took a seat on the grass. "You just don't usually get this defensive over these things. I mean, I remember when you liked Ron, you were pretty open with me then."

"Let's not ever bring up Ron and I again." Hermione scoffed as she took a seat next to him. "That was a lapse in judgement there."

"Agreed." Harry grinned. "But back to Fleur, if you don't fancy her, then what in the bloody Hell is going on? I just got clued in on this and it already feels like my head is spinning."

"Nothing is going on Harry." Hermione groaned as she laid back and looked up at the sky. "We've talked a couple of times and were becoming civil, but her little sister just kind of reminded me of the reasons why that's a bad idea."

"And why is it a bad idea?"

Hermione furrowed her brow as she watched the clouds pass by. "Because she could just be trying to use me and take advantage of me for her own personal gain."

"That's true." Harry nodded his head. "But she could also genuinely like you Hermione. Believe it or not, you're a very likable person." He smiled at her eye roll; she still didn't know how to take a compliment. "Plus, there are two sides to every story."

"Yeah, yeah. I know." She sighed.

"And I don't know if you've been told this, but it's okay to like her too."

"I could never like someone like that." She scoffed.

"She seems alright to me." He shrugged. "Maybe she just has a bad rap. You know how people are."

"If I didn't know any better, I would think you're trying to push me into liking her Harry Potter." Hermione glanced at the now grinning seeker out of the corner of her eye.

"No, not at all." He laughed. "I'm just saying she might deserve a chance."

"She bloody tried to seduce me!" Hermione sat up, glaring at Harry who now turned a bright shade of red.

"What? You mean like Pansy?" He gawked.

"No, I mean. She was in the prefect bathroom playing loud music and I went to go handle it and she became kind of . . . forward."

"How so?"

"I don't know . . . she kind of . . ." Hermione started to blush when she recalled the event she had yet to tell a soul about. "Got close to kissing me or . . . I think she did. I don't know."

"Sounds kind of circumstantial." He shrugged. "Perhaps your imagination was running wild, because you wanted-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence." Hermione growled.

"Alright, alright." He scooted away a little for his own safety. "All I'm saying is the situation doesn't seem cut and dry. She has been nothing but nice to me whenever we encounter each other, but if she has been so horrible and forward with you then-"

"Well she isn't always horrible." Hermione sighed as she picked at some grass. "She has had her . . . moments."

"Oh?" Harry's grin returned full force. _'I knew it.'_

"Yeah, but I'm not going to be foolish and fall for her theatrics. It's too complicated to put into words. I just don't want anything to do with this mess."

"It is entirely possible that you are both right." Luna's dreamy voice cut into their conversation, making the pair snap their head in her direction. "Sorry, I couldn't help but overhear."

"What do you mean by that?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the curious blonde inspecting her surroundings with big pink sunglasses on.

"Well no one is just one thing. No one is all evil or all good. Even Voldemort had a pet he loved." She shrugged.

"You mean Nagini!?" Harry guffawed.

"Yes." Luna smiled. "It is entirely possible she is all of the things you are worried she is and all of the things you hope her to be at the same time and more. The same can be said for you and me too I suppose."

"Your point being?" Hermione frowned, she hated when Luna butted in and made so much sense and none at all at the same time. It was like falling through the rabbit hole whenever Luna showed up.

"There is no point." Luna spoke in a whimsical voice as she plucked a flower and spun it around in her hand, inspecting the petals.

"Exactly." Harry smiled.

"Don't act like you understood any of that Harry." Hermione glared over at her friend she considered more like a brother these days. "You guys have been no help at all."

"I thought you didn't need help with Fleur and you already made your mind up about her." Harry grinned and burst out into laughter when his remark earned him a hard punch in the arm from the golden girl.

"Shut up."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, I do so love our star child Luna Lovegood haha hope you guys liked the newest installment. Comments are always appreciated :)


	9. Dragons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter :D No songs really inspired me during this one, I just listened to random tunes the entire time haha Anyways, hope you guys enjoy :D

"Dragons!"

Ron's panicked voice shattered the comfortable silence that had enveloped Hermione and Harry as they laid in the grass, gazing up at the clouds.

"Bloody dragons!" He cried again, making the pair sit up and look at him oddly.

"Is everything alright Ron?" Harry raised an eyebrow at his red-faced friend who was leaning forward, resting his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath.

Ron shook his head, chest heaving as he choked out. "Charlie . . . task . . . dragons . . ."

"You are making absolutely no sense Ronald." Hermione sighed. "Catch your breath and try again.

"Sorry." Ron blushed as he stood up straight. "I saw Charlie. He took me to the forbidden forest and showed me the dragons he brought here . . . for the first task."

"Dragons!?" Harry shot up to his feet.

"No bloody way." Hermione stood up as well. "They can't possibly expect you guys to fight those things! That is beyond dangerous, not to mention potentially harmful to the dragons."

"Leave it to Hermione to be worried about the dragons." Ron rolled his eyes.

"Well someone has to be!" She huffed and crossed her arms.

"I don't know what to do against a dragon!" Harry cried. "I thought we would be dueling or . . . looking for something!"

"You mean a scavenger hunt?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." Harry nodded his head and Hermione had to bite her tongue to stop herself from giving the boy who lived a lecture. "I mean, I knew the tournament was dangerous but I didn't think it would be THIS dangerous. I only have a week until the first task . . . What am I going to do?" He looked to his friends who looked just as lost as him.

"I'll go to the library and see what I can find on dragons." Hermione rubbed her temples as she grasped at straws for a solution, she could only hope that the books she loved so much might have some answers.

"Thanks 'Mione." Harry let out a relieved sighed, he knew with the brightest witch of their age in his corner he would make it out alive, even if it was just by the skin of his teeth as usual.

"What about Viktor?" Ron jumped in, his face looking pale. "Someone needs to warn him! Getting burnt to a crisp could really hurt his quidditch career!"

"You're upset I'm worried about the dragons, but here you are fretting over Viktor Krum and his broomstick." Hermione grumbled.

"You just don't understand." Ron sighed as he shook his head.

"What about Fleur?" Harry chimed in, catching the bookworms attention.

"What about her?" Hermione tried to act casual and cold even though she had been thinking the same thing but was far too stubborn to bring up the question herself. Her loyalties lied with Harry, of course, and she was still unsure as to what to do about Fleur, but that didn't mean she wanted to see the veela dead.

"You're not going to tell her?" Harry frowned. "I know you have something weird going on with her, but she deserves to know."

"I'll tell her!" A dopey grin spread across Ron's face as he thought about how grateful the gorgeous blonde would be if he gave her fair warning.

Hermione saw the far off look in the red-head's eyes and knew immediately where his head went and for some reason she did not like that at all. "Absolutely not Ronald."

"So, you just don't want her to know?" Harry crossed his arms. "That seems a little petty Hermione."

"I didn't say that." Hermione snapped back but let out a defeated sigh when she saw the stern look on Harry's face. "Fine, I'll tell her and whoever sees Viktor first should tell him too. I'm sure that will be you Ron, seeing as you follow him around more than his fangirls."

"I don't follow him around." Ron cried out.

"Riiight." Harry grinned. "Maybe he'll give you an autograph if you get to him first mate."

"You think he would!?" Ron's eyes lit up and both his friends burst into a fit of giggles. "Oh, sod off! You're both terrible! Remind me to never help you again." Ron grumbled as he started to stomp up to the castle.

"I suppose we should go after him." Hermione shook her head with a smile firmly in place; she treasured these small moments the three shared more than she would ever say. A couple years ago, she didn't think it would be possible for them to have such lighthearted arguments when there was the looming figure of death called Voldemort hanging over their heads.

"I suppose you're right." Harry smiled back as they walked after the still fuming red-head.

/

Later that night Hermione found herself searching for a pair of bright blue eyes in the dining hall, but was disappointed when neither Fleur or Krum were in sight. She felt an odd sense of urgency to warn the champions of the danger they were soon to face so she ate her dinner quick and scurried to the lake in hopes that one of them would be there.

Viktor was the easiest one to find out of the two, seeing as she only had to follow the trail of girls that were always hot on the seeker's tail. The squealing of said fan girls lead her in the right direction and when she finally laid eyes on the Bulgarian she paused in her steps.

"Bloody Hell . . ." She mumbled quietly to herself when she saw Viktor shirtless doing pull ups on a tree branch. A blush spread across her cheeks when she watched how his biceps bulged and abs flexed as he slowly pulled himself up. _'Pull it together Granger.'_ Hermione inwardly scolded herself as she shook her head. _'You're acting like another one of those drooling fan girls.'_

"Hermioninny!" Viktor smiled and promptly dropped from the branch when he caught the book worm staring.

"H-hey Viktor." The blush returned to Hermione's cheeks. She briefly took note of a stray sweat bead rolling down the center of his well-defined abs as he approached her.

"Vat brings you to my neck of the voods?" He asked as he tossed his shirt over his boulder he called a shoulder, making him look like the spitting image of an abercrombie and fitch model.

"I-I was . . ." Hermione stumbled on her words as he rested his free hand on the tree text to her, slightly invading her personal space.

"Are you okay Hermioninny?" He leaned in a little more with a concerned look on his face.

"Brilliant!" She put on a smile that was a little too big to cover up how nervous his proximity was making her. "I was looking for you actually."

"Oh?" He raised an eyebrow. "Vat can I do for you?"

"I just um . . ." Hermione took a step back to clear her head. "I just came to warn you about the first task."

"The first task?"

"Yeah, it's dragons."

"Dragons?" He took a step back with a shocked look on his face.

"Yeah, Ron's brother works with them and he brought some here for the first task. You guys are supposed to face off against them or something." She sighed as she rubbed her arm awkwardly. "I just thought you should be given fair warning."

"Thank you Hermioninny." An easy smile spread across his face as he took a step forward and wrapped his big arms around her, making her cheeks heat up even more when she felt his damp flesh against her own.

"I-it's nothing." Hermione stuttered out as she awkwardly patted his back, making her cringe when she felt her hand get wet.

"Sorry." He grinned as he pulled away and rubbed the back of his head. "I'm sweaty."

"It's fine." Hermione waved off his embarrassment.

"I vish there vas some vay I could repay you for this."

"Think nothing of it. I'm sure you would have done the same if you had known." Hermione smiled.

"Perhaps I could. . ." Viktor cleared his throat as he seemed to struggle with what he wanted to ask. "take you out to dinner the next Hogsmeade visit?"

"D-dinner . . .?" Hermione's blush returned tenfold. _'Did Viktor Krum really just ask me out on a date?'_ "I um . . . I don't know." Hermione chewed on her lower lip nervously. "I'm going to be awfully busy helping Harry prepare."

"Oh." Viktor frowned as he looked down.

"But maybe some other time." Hermione quickly said when she saw the disappointed look starting to form on the seeker's face.

"That vould be great." Viktor smiled and Hermione returned it in kind, but it dropped from her face when she saw blonde hair quickly make its way past them.

_'Fleur?'_ Hermione frowned as she watched the veela walk off with her head held high, heading towards the Beauxbatons carriage. "Well, I'll let you get back to your um . . . work out." Hermione gave a half-hearted smile to Viktor and left before he could even properly say goodbye.

"Fleur!" Hermione yelled after the veela as she approached the carriage, but it didn't seem Fleur heard her. The exchange student just quickened her pace and entered the carriage, promptly slamming the door behind her.

Hermione let out a sigh and stopped in her steps when Fleur disappeared behind the door. _'I guess I'll just have to catch her later.'_

/

Girls jumped out of Fleur's way as she stormed down the halls of the Beuxbatons carriage, heading for her room, secretly hoping for someone to try to confront her so she could find some outlet for her rage, but it seemed no one felt brave enough to approach Fleur Delacour. When she reached her destination she tossed her journal onto her desk and all but threw herself onto her bed and rolled onto her back. She glared up at her bedroom ceiling as she replayed the events that just occurred over and over again in her head.

She had been sitting by the lake, trying to draw when she heard the excited squeals of Viktor's fan club. She let out an irritated sigh when she looked up and saw he had decided to post up twenty feet from her and proceeded to do his pullups on a tree branch. _'Can't 'e do zat somewhere else?'_ She inwardly grumbled to herself as she tried to focus back on her art.

For the most part, she was able to block out the excited squeals and chatter of the girls nearby and started drawing, but her quill paused its scribbling and her ears perked when she made out the faint voice of Hermione Granger.

She curiously looked up and leaned a bit to the side to try to get a better view of what exactly Hermione was doing there and what she saw made her grit her teeth. She watched Viktor approach the bookworm and almost snapped her quill when she saw the blush that formed on Hermione's face at his close proximity and lack of clothing. _'Zat brute better keep 'is filzy 'ands to 'imself.'_ She seethed and strained to listen in on their seemingly deep conversation.

She watched the pair closely, growing more apprehensive and irritated as she watched Hermione stumble over her words; the golden girl was clearly affected by Viktor Krum and his lack of clothing. In one swift move Viktor moved in and pulled Hermione into a tight embrace leaving both Hermione and Fleur surprised. _'Viktor Krum ees a dead man.'_ Fleur thought darkly and jumped to her feet, clenching her hands into a tight fist when she saw the embrace go on far longer than she would like it to.

She quietly approached and leaned on a tree, listening in on their conversation and what she heard made her veela start to thrash around inside of her. _'e asked 'er out!?'_ She eagerly listened for Hermione's response and felt herself calm a bit when Hermione turned him down and was about to go back to what she was doing when she heard Hermione tell him that she would on a later date.

Her blood was boiling and it took everything in her not to storm over to Viktor and punch him right in his smug face. _'Ze nerve of zat damned Bulgarian. 'e knows damn well zat I 'ave 'ad my eye on 'Ermione.'_ She paced for a moment, feeling more and more riled up the longer she stayed there so she made a quick retreat back to the carriage before did something she knew she would regret.

She heard Hermione call after her, but she knew she would just lash out at the brunette if she gave in to temptation and stopped to talk to her so she quickened her pace and quickly slammed the door behind her before Hermione could stop her.

A soft knock on the door broke Fleur from her dark thoughts and she quickly put a neutral face back on, trying to look as unbothered as possible. "Entrez." Odette's head poked in through the door, looking at her alpha with worried blue eyes. _**"What do you need?"**_

_**"I kind of got the sense that you were upset."**_ Odette chewed on her lower lip nervously as she entered the room.

_**"I'm not."**_ Fleur bristled and crossed her arms as she looked out her window.

_**"I can feel it coming off of you in waves."**_ Odette carefully prodded as she took a seat on the edge of Fleur's bed.

_'Damn flock sense.'_ Fleur inwardly cursed.

_**"Do you want to talk about it?"**_ Odette tried again.

_**"No."**_ Fleur replied stubbornly and Odette merely nodded her head, leaving the two to sit in silence until Fleur couldn't hold it in anymore. _**"That damned Bulgarian is getting in the way."**_ Fleur broke the silence, startling the red head.

_**"Who?"** _

_**"Viktor Krum."**_ Just saying the name left a bad taste in Fleur's mouth.

_**"What did he do? Is he trying to sabotage you in the tournament?"**_ Odette instinctually tensed up at the thought of someone trying to hurt her alpha.

_**"No."**_ Fleur grumbled. _**"He is interfering with my pursuit of Hermione Granger."**_

_**"Oh? How so?"** _

_**"He asked her on a fucking date!"**_ Fleur jumped up from her bed, her rage now at full blast as she paced back and forth.

Odette was mildly shocked at how ruffled her alpha was by that; she figured it was something more serious by how strong she felt Fleur's emotions all the way on the opposite side of the carriage. _**". . . And that . . . bothers you?"**_ Odette furrowed her brow in confusion. _**"I thought pursuing Hermione was just a bet."**_

Fleur paused in her steps when she heard Odette's words. _**"It is." 'I zink.' "It's just the principal of the matter."**_ She growled as she replayed how he embraced the young Gryffindor. _**"You should see the way he paws at her."**_

_**"He seems nice to me . . ."**_ Odette immediately regretted her words when she was met with Fleur's icy stare. _**"I mean . . ."**_ The red head uncomfortably cleared her throat. _**"What did Hermione say when he asked her out?"**_

_**"She said she was busy with helping Harry with the tournament, but maybe some other time."**_ Fleur grumbled as she crossed her arms and looked out the window. _**"I mean what could she possibly see in that Bulgarian brute?"**_

_**"Pure intentions?"**_ Veronique laughed as she sauntered into the room. _**"Sorry, I couldn't help but hear your rant from all the way across the carriage."**_ Veronique grinned as she plopped onto the bed next to Odette.

_**"I don't remember saying you could come in."**_ Fleur glared at the raven-haired girl lounging on her furniture.

_**"I don't remember asking for an invitation."**_ Veronique shot back with a smirk. _**"Why are you so riled up anyways? You don't even like that nerd."**_ Veronique rolled her eyes as she started to file her nails.

_**"Because that damned Bulgarian is going to make this so much more complicated for me, which I'm sure you love."** _

_**"I do."**_ Veronique smiled wickedly at her friend's new obstacle.

_**"Well, she didn't say yes."**_ Odette chimed in, making both girls look at her. _**"So, it doesn't seem like you have too much to be worried about."**_

_**"Not YET."**_ Veronique corrected her friend with a twinkle in her green eyes.

/

The next day Hermione fidgeted nervously in her seat as she waited for Potions to start. She looked over her shoulder for what felt like millionth time to see if Fleur had arrived to class yet, but the veela was nowhere in sight. Her eyes briefly met with Viktors, causing a smile to break out on his face which she returned in kind, but the sound of someone loudly dropping their bag onto the floor drew her attention away from the young seeker.

Hermione was almost startled by the sight of Fleur and her icy appearance. _'I wonder what has her so irked.'_ Hermione frowned when Fleur leaned back in her chair, crossed her arms, and glared daggers at the front of the class as if the blackboard had offended her.

"Fleur seems to be in a right foul mood today." Harry spoke quietly to Hermione as he looked over his shoulder.

"Yeah." Hermione nodded her head. "Maybe I should wait to tell her about the dragons . . ."

"Is the great Hermione Granger afraid of another girl?" Harry laughed, causing his companion to bristle.

"I'm not afraid." Hermione sat up straighter, putting her nose up in the air. "I just don't want to be snapped at."

"Sure." Harry grinned at how easy it was to rile his friend up.

"I'm not!" Hermione pushed the now laughing Gryffindor. "I'll go tell her right now." Hermione said haughtily as she stood up and straightened out her robes.

When she turned around she felt almost all of her confidence leave her immediately when she saw everyone's eyes on her, but she was not going to let Harry Potter think she was a coward so she held her head high and slowly approached Fleur who was starting to look more and more curious the closer she got.

"H-hey Fleur." Hermione started a little shakier than she had hoped she would.

"Non." Fleur replied with a neutral look on her face.

"No?" Hermione was taken aback by Fleur's cool demeanor. "No what?"

"Non, I will not go out wiz you." She replied dryly, making Hermione's jaw almost hit the floor.

_'The bloody nerve of this girl!'_ Hermione thought angrily with hot cheeks when she heard the girl with dark hair Fleur always hung out with snigger.

"'ermione, I am kidding of course." Fleur's stony face broke into a small smile when she noticed the golden girl bristle. "What can I do for you Mademoiselle Granger?" Fleur leaned forward, resting her chin on her hands.

"I was going to tell you something, but now I think I will keep this bit of information to myself." Hermione put her nose up in the air, turning sharply on her heel.

Fleur opened her mouth to call the haughty Gryffindor back, but was promptly interrupted by Snape starting the lesson. _'Just my luck.'_ Fleur inwardly groaned to herself as she leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms again.

The entire class Fleur bounced her foot up and down as she stared at the back of Hermione's head. She had been completely surprised that Hermione had approached her and actually wanted to talk her, seeing as she had been avoiding her since Gabrielle had had that little chat with her. In hindsight, it was probably a bad idea to have made that joke, but she couldn't help but feel a bit smug at the look that crossed Hermione's face when she turned down her non-existent proposal. She had calmed down considerably since the day before and was back on her mission, but she still felt slightly ruffled by Hermione's interaction with Viktor. Her response to Hermione may have been funny to her and perhaps she felt as if it was retribution for being given the cold shoulder, but it was also probably detrimental at the same time.

She could tell by Hermione's stiff posture that she was still irked by the joke and couldn't stop herself from ripping out a piece of paper from her notebook and crumpling it up. She closed one eye as she carefully aimed at the back of Hermione's head. She took a moment to steady her hand before she let the wad fly and inwardly cheered when it met its intended target who proceeded to whip around and glare at her.

'I'm sorry.' Fleur mouthed as she put on her best innocent face.

Hermione just rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the front of the class, making Fleur let out a little huff of irritation. Being ignored was not something she was used to along with the other emotions that rattled around inside of her that she was desperately trying to suppress. It felt like there was something crawling under her skin, itching to get out and it was just getting worse. She didn't know why it bothered her so much that Hermione thought so little of her at the moment. She briefly heard Gabrielle's voice in her head again, but quickly waved it off as she crumbled up another ball of paper.

She took careful aim again and let the paper fly, but this time it seemed as if Hermione had been anticipating a second round, because the second it got within inches of the brunette Hermione simply flicked her wand and the paper went flying past her head. Fleur watched in horror as it went all the way to the front of the class and hit Snape right in the back of the head.

"Who did that!?" He roared as he hurled around, eyeing the room suspiciously.

Fleur had made sure to quickly look back down at her notes, pretending to write as she felt the color drain from her face.

"The next person who even thinks about so much as balling up a piece of paper will have the pleasure of spending detention with me for the next three months." He threatened with a scowl before turning back to the blackboard.

Hermione looked back at the blonde who was deathly pale and couldn't stop the grin that split across her face. 'Nice aim.' Hermione mouthed and had to stop herself from bursting out into a fit of laughter when Fleur narrowed her eyes at her.

"What was that?" Harry asked quietly as Hermione turned back around.

"Nothing. Mind your own business." Hermione hissed back, making a grin form on Harry's face; he knew his friend far too well.

"Yeah, you don't fancy Fleur at all." Harry mumbled quietly to himself, earning a hard jab in the ribs from Hermione.

/

After class Fleur packed up her things as quickly as possible to catch the young Gryffindor before she retreated and she lost her chance. "'ermione!" Fleur called out and gently grabbed Hermione's elbow before she could exit the classroom.

"What?" Hermione frowned as she stopped and glared down at Fleur's hand.

Fleur let go of Hermione's arm when she saw the flash of anger in the fiery girl's eyes. "Je suis désolé for earlier. I did not mean to offend you."

Hermione said nothing to Fleur's apology as Viktor passed by to leave. For a moment she could have sworn Fleur gave the Bulgarian a nasty look and he returned it in kind, but as soon as it seemed to happen it was over, leaving Hermione wondering if she imagined the quiet dispute.

"What did you want to tell me?" Fleur tried again, boring her bright eyes into Hermione's.

"Nothing important." Hermione shrugged as she shifted to her other foot. "Just wanted to give you fair warning that you're facing off against a dragon in the first task."

Fleur sighed as she leaned against a desk. "I wish I could say I am surprised."

"You already knew?" Hermione furrowed her brow, completely taken aback by Fleur's response; both Harry and Viktor looked mortified, but Fleur looked cool as a cucumber.

"Non." Fleur shook her head. "But I was expecting somezing 'orrible."

"I see." Hermione shifted nervously to her other foot when she realized they were now alone.

"Merci 'Ermione." Fleur smiled that smile that always threw her off-guard. "Zis information will 'elp me a lot."

"It's no problem." Hermione looked off to the side. "It was Harry's idea to tell you and Viktor anyway."

"So zat ees why you were talking wiz Viktor ze ozer day." Fleur's smile widened as the pieces of the puzzle that had been in her mind all day finally came together.

"Erm, yeah." Hermione looked confused as to why Fleur was smiling so much. _'She just found out she's about to face a bloody dragon and she smiles? Is she insane?'_

"Would eet be proper to ask 'Arry out on a date since 'e was kind enough to warn me about ze dragons?" Fleur asked innocently as she looked to the closed classroom door as if she was questioning going after the boy who lived which unsettled Hermione for reasons she was still unsure about.

"Well, Harry didn't tell you, I did." The words left Hermione's mouth before she even properly thought about the implications.

"Oh?" Fleur turned her attention back to Hermione with a mischievous spark in her electric eyes as a sly smile slid across her face. "Would you prefer I ask you zen?"

"W-what!?" Hermione's cheeks started to heat up as Fleur got closer. "No! I was just simply-"

"Or do you already 'ave plans?" Fleur asked with a raised eyebrow and as she took a slow step forward Hermione took a step back.

"Other plans?" Hermione was becoming confused with where Fleur was going with this. She continued to take steps back while Fleur approached her until her butt met the edge of Fleur's desk, leaving her trapped once again.

"Per'aps a date wiz zat Bulgarian boy?" Fleur leaned forward, resting her hand on the edge of the desk next to Hermione as she looked at her with a sparkle in her arctic eyes Hermione couldn't place.

"You mean Viktor?" Hermione looked even more confused as she leaned her body back as far as it would go. _'How much did she hear the other day?'_

"Oui." Fleur spoke softly as she moved in closer, sliding her hand up the desk and got so close Hermione could smell her expensive perfume once more, making her head swim.

"I don't have a date with Viktor." Hermione furrowed her brow as Fleur leaned in closer. _'What in the bloody hell is she doing?'_

"Hmmm." Fleur seemed to hum her approval as she leaned in a little more to the point their lips were mere inches away from touching.

Hermione's amber eyes nervously flickered down to those plump pink lips that were almost calling out to her. _'Get a grip Granger.'_ Hermione inwardly chided herself and was about to push the veela away when Fleur stepped back of her own accord, leaving Hermione even more perplexed.

"Forgot my quill." Fleur held up the quill in her hand with a small grin while Hermione looked back to the desk with wide eyes to confirm Fleur had indeed been just trying to grab something. "Tell 'Arry I said merci."

Hermione turned her attention back to the blonde who had the end of the quill between her teeth with a coy smile on her face. "You're the bloody worst." Hermione glared at the French witch who burst into a fit of giggles.

"Says ze girl who almost got me detention wiz zat 'orrible man." Fleur replied with a smirk before she turned to leave. "You best 'urry to your next class Mademoiselle Granger." Fleur said over her shoulder. "You do not want to be late."

"Fleur!" Hermione growled as she grabbed her own books and ran out the door before she was indeed late to her next class.

/

A couple days later Hermione found herself in the library in her usual spot surrounded by books pertaining to dragons. She had had a hard time focusing when that bold veela kept popping into her head, making her lose her place as she read. _'Stupid Fleur.'_ Hermione grumbled to herself as she re-read the same paragraph for what felt like the millionth time. _'That girl has no sense of boundaries.'_

"Ees zis seat taken?" Came said girl's smooth voice as she took a seat next to Hermione without waiting for a response.

"Guess it is now." Hermione mumbled irritably as she tried even harder to focus on her book.

"Are zese all ze books 'Ogwarts 'as on dragons?" Fleur frowned as she picked through some of the books, hoping to find something that might help her.

"Yup. Have at them." Was Hermione's curt response.

"'Ermione . . ." Fleur frowned as she turned to the brunette desperately trying to ignore her. "Did I do somezing to upset you?"

"You mean besides your lewd advances and insufferable attitude?" Hermione glared over at Fleur over the top of her book.

"Je suis désolé for zat. My sense of 'umor is a bit . . ." Fleur struggled for a moment to grasp the right word. "Crass, as you English might say."

"It's crass at best." Hermione griped as she went back to her book.

"But you seemed un'appy wiz me before zat. Did I do somezing wrong?" Fleur looked down as she chewed on her lower lip. She had been internally struggling with how to get over this hump with the golden girl for the last couple days, choosing to keep her distance instead, but she found there would be no way around it. If she wanted to make any headway with Hermione Granger she would have to swallow her pride and be as upfront as possible without revealing too much.

Hermione paused her reading when she heard Fleur's question, replaying her conversation with Gabrielle and then her discussion with Harry and Luna. She had been so confused the last couple days that she hardly knew what to do or think of anything at this point. Fleur hadn't really done anything to her, except be a little too forward with her jokes. The only thing making her act the way she was was the things Gabrielle told her, which she wasn't even sure how much she could trust anyways. "No." Hermione finally responded coolly as she tried to get back on track. "I've just been worried about Harry."

"Zat is understandable." Fleur nodded her head as she flipped through a couple pages of a book. "But I am sure 'e will be fine. 'Arry seems to be able to take care of 'imself." The scoff that slipped from Hermione's mouth immediately caught Fleur's attention and made her look up from her book with an amused twinkle in her eye. "Or per'aps I am mistaken."

"He's bloody lucky is what he is." Hermione shook her head as she leaned back in her chair. "I just don't know how far his luck will take him fighting a dragon."

"I don't zink we will be fighting zem." Fleur replied as she went back to her book and Hermione raised an eyebrow curiously.

"What makes you say that?"

"Dragons are almost extinct." Fleur mumbled as she continued skimming through the page. "I can not imagine doing 'arm to such a creature let alone killing one of zem."

"Yeah . . ." Hermione looked at the blonde who seemed deeply involved in the book she was reading. This was the last response she expected from Fleur Delacour, champion of Beauxbatons academy. _"_ I was worried about that bit."

"Zey will most likely be guarding somezing so zere should be no need to 'urt zem." Fleur continued, not missing a beat, or showing she was affected by Hermione's shocked gaze.

"Guarding something . . ." Hermione was in awe for a minute that she had not thought of that herself first. "Wait . . ." Hermione suddenly eyed the veela suspiciously. "Why are you telling me this? Aren't you worried I will tell Harry?"

"Non." Fleur shrugged as she closed the book and tossed it back onto the table. "In fact, I want you tell 'im."

"What? Why?" If Hermione was confused before, it was nothing compared to how she felt now. "He's your opponent."

"'Arry had you warn me about ze dragons. Eet ees ze least I can do to repay 'im." Fleur smiled as she stood up and slung her bag over her shoulder. "You might also want to tell 'im 'e needs to stick to 'is strong suits, per'aps flying." Fleur shrugged.

"That could actually work." Hermione mumbled to herself as she looked down deep in thought. _'All he would have to do is summon his broom and get the object before the dragon catches him.'_ Hermione looked back up to see Fleur about to leave and for some reason foreign to her she couldn't let that happen just yet. "Wait, Fleur." Hermione stood up and felt a blush creep onto her cheeks when the foreigner turned around to look at her curiously. "I um . . ." Hermione suddenly felt nervous under Fleur's scrutinizing gaze. "You don't need any other books?"

"Non, I already found what I needed." Fleur smiled and once again Hermione was floored by how sharp the other witch really was. She had been in the library for hours on end and hadn't found a single thing that would help her, but Fleur just strolled in, opened one book, and got everything she needed that quickly.

"Oh, well. Thanks for the information." Hermione rubbed her arm awkwardly as she shifted her gaze to a book case.

Fleur's smile brightened when she saw how nervous Hermione had become. "Eet eez nozing. I am 'appy to 'elp."

"But aren't you worried this is going to hinder your chances?" Hermione looked back to the blonde that thoroughly perplexed her. She couldn't fathom why Fleur would help her opponent far beyond what was decent and right.

Fleur just laughed at Hermione's question, a confident gleam shining in her arctic blue eyes. "Non. Zere ees no doubt in my mind zat I will win zis tournament, but zank you for your concern." Fleur winked at Hermione with that insufferable smile she always wore on her face.

Hermione couldn't help but roll her eyes and smile as the blonde swept out of the room. "Cocky git."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooh, looks like someone got jealous for a second there >.> Low key, I love Fleur's confidence though haha Anyways, as always, I would love to hear your guys' thoughts on the chapter :D


	10. I Promise I'm Trying

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I'm very excited to post this chapter. The first task finally happens and we will see who the victor is :D Multiple songs inspired this chapter, but the two main ones were "All The Boys" by Panic at the Disco and "I promise I'm Trying" by Cavetown for the ending part. Cavetown is honestly great to just listen to when you're relaxing period, but I found the lyrics to the song really stuck out to me for the ending of this chapter. Anyways, I do so hope you guys enjoy the newest installment. It's a bit of a long one and once more, thank you so much for the continued support :)

_'I realize how hard on you this must seem_   
_But trust me when I say_   
_Its far, far worse for me'  
_ **I Promise I'm Trying by Cavetown** _  
_

"Alright you lot, time to place your bets." Ginny spoke from her seat at the Gryffindor table. Today was the morning of the first task and the youngest Weasley was taking full advantage to fill her pockets.

"You're not seriously betting on the first task." Hermione glared over at the red head collecting money from her peers. "If Harry saw this he would be thoroughly upset."

"Only because the odds are stacked against him." Ginny replied with a shrug and a grin as she counted the money. "Not as bad as Delacour though."

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" She looked over her shoulder to glimpse at the blonde eating a parfait, looking unfazed as usual. "What are the odds for Fleur?"

"6.5 to 1." Ginny spoke without looking up.

Fleur glanced up and when she caught the golden girl's eye she sent her a dazzling smile. "I'll put five hundred galleons on her." Hermione said as she turned around, a smug smile sliding across her face when Ginny looked up in shock. _'Let's see if she can live up to that ego of hers.'_

"I'm going to skip over the part where Hermione Granger is actually partaking in gambling and go straight to the part where you're betting five hundred galleons . . . on Delacour." Ginny gaped at the smirking brunette. "Are you mad!?"

"Nope." Hermione smiled as she summoned her money and shoved it into Ginny's reluctant hands.

_**"You should eat more than that Fleur."**_ Odette frowned when she saw her alpha picking at her parfait. _**"You're going to need your strength for the task."**_

_**"I don't want to eat too much."**_ Fleur shrugged as she pushed her food away. _**"I don't want to be weighed down."**_

_**"You should listen to Odette."**_ Came Gabrielle's calm voice as she took a seat at the table across from her sister.

_**"If I didn't know any better, I would think you're worried about our dear Fleur."**_ Veronique smirked at the younger girl.

Gabrielle briefly paused while loading her plate to glance at her sister; to anyone else it would seem as if Fleur was feeling confident, but she could tell by how little Fleur ate, how she slightly shifted in her seat every couple of seconds, and discreetly fidgeted with the hem of her dress that she was in fact nervous. She may strongly dislike her older sibling at the moment, but in no way did she want her to faulter and get hurt. _**"There's nothing to worry about. Fleur will come out on top as usual."**_ Gabrielle shrugged, giving Fleur a subtle confidence boost.

Veronique scoffed at the youngest Delacour's cool demeanor. _**"Looks like that big ego runs in the family."**_

Fleur just looked at her little sister, shocked at her confidence that she would come out unscathed and was slightly touched that it seemed Gabrielle still looked up to her in a way. She was sure Gabrielle would have some smart remark to say to her to put her down before the task; she had made it clear that she thought very little of Fleur so to hear something that may seem so casual come out of her mouth was surprising to say the least.

_**"That ego runs in the family for good reason."**_ Fleur recovered and quickly hid her shock with a confident grin. _**"If you'll excuse me, I have a competition to win."**_

_**"I'd wish you luck, but apparently you don't need it."**_ Odette smiled up at her alpha who was standing just a little straighter. She knew Fleur was a confident girl and had been so up to this day; it was one thing to talk about going against a dragon, but actually doing it was another thing entirely. She had felt Fleur's emotions again all morning and she was sure Gabrielle did too. She was still shocked sometimes by how good Fleur was at covering up her nerves and emotions and it made it almost impossible to give the girl reassurance without making her feel weak so she was beyond happy Gabrielle gave her alpha the confidence boost she needed.

_**"Who needs luck when you have plenty of skill."**_ Fleur replied with a wink before she turned and left to go to the champion's tent.

/

"Did you see Harry this morning?" Hermione frowned as she walked with Ron and Ginny towards the stadium. "I wanted to wish him good luck before the task."

"Yeah, he left really early." Ron shrugged. "He drove me bloody crazy last night, tossing and turning. I barely got any sleep."

"Poor you." Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Probably his nerves getting the best of him." Hermione chewed on her lower lip. Sitting in the dining hall, talking, and betting on the task had been all fun and games, but now as they approached the stadium reality hit and she felt her heart sink to her stomach. She knew Harry was very capable of taking care of himself and they had trained extensively the last couple of days to prepare him, but she still worried about him. He had become like a brother to her and she hated the idea of him being in danger once more; she thought they had finally got past that chapter in their lives. "Hey guys . . ." Her eyes drifted over to the champions tent as they were about to enter the stadium and she stopped in her steps. "I'll catch up with you in a minute. Save me a seat yeah?"

Ron gave her a funny look over his shoulder, scrutinizing her for a moment before he shrugged his shoulders. "Okay." Ron said as he continued on with his sister; he knew by now that when Hermione got an idea in her head, there was no changing her mind.

/

The air was thick with anticipation in the champions tent as Fleur sat on a seat, filing her nails while, much to her annoyance, Krum did push-ups ten feet away from her, and Harry paced back and forth with wide eyes. She had to admit she felt slightly bad for the anxious boy who lived; she had half a mind to get up and reassure him, but she was stuck in her own head at the moment with her own concerns. She knew what she had to do and had practiced it many times in the days before the tournament, but it didn't stop her veela from jumping around anxiously inside of her.

"Psst." Fleur's eyes shifted to the side when she heard someone outside of the tent. "Psst."

Harry snapped his head to the side and walked over the flap, pushing his head against the fabric with heavy breaths. "Hermione?" Harry asked softly, making the blonde's ears perk at the name.

"Harry . . . how are you feeling?" Hermione asked nervously. "Okay?"

"I'm feeling. . . Alright." Harry replied, even though he felt anything but alright.

Hermione nodded her head even though she knew her friend couldn't see her. "The key is to concentrate . . . after that you just have to-"

"Battle a dragon." Harry replied and much to his surprise Hermione quickly pushed the flap aside and threw herself into him, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly as she buried her head in his chest.

Fleur and Krum watched as Harry wrapped his arms around Hermione's waist, both having a similar look cross their features. Fleur's veela stirred uncomfortably at the sight, that awful feeling settling into her stomach as they held each other. She briefly wondered what it would be like to have Hermione give her the same dedication and affection she showed to her . . . friend? _'I did not realize zat zey are zat close . . .'_ She pushed the thought aside, trying to avert her gaze only to have a flash go off in the tent that nearly blinded her.

"Young love." Came Rita Skeeter's voice as she stood next to her photographer. "How . . . stirring." She smiled behind a thick layer of red lipstick. "Who knew the Golden trio was so close."

Fleur immediately bristled at the comment from the nosey reporter. _'Zey aren't togezer.'_ She wanted to say, but kept her mouth firmly shut as she glared daggers at the other blonde in the room.

"If anything goes unfortunately today, you two might make the front page." Her smile widened as the two separated and crossed their arms, glowering at her.

"You have no business here." Viktor jumped in with his thick accent as he stood up. "This tent is for champions . . . and friends." His dark eyes drifted over to the bookworm, causing a blush to spread across her cheeks which did not go unnoticed by a silently fuming veela.

"No matter." Rita brushed off the angry Bulgarian. "We've got what we wanted." She smiled once more as the feather on her quill swept across Viktor's cheek and her camera man took one more quick shot of the champions before they slithered out of the tent.

"Great." Hermione sighed irritably as she swept her eyes over the tent, her eye briefly catching Fleur's who was sporting blue running shorts with a white stripe up the side and a blue tank top with her hair up in a ponytail. _'She's going against a dragon and she's wearing that? Does she want to get burned alive?'_ Hermione thought to herself, but her cheeks heated up once more when she took a second to take in Fleur's long legs and lean figure. Their eyes met again and this time Fleur had a smirk on her face as she raised an eyebrow at the young Gryffindor; apparently she had been caught staring. _'Cocky git.'_ Hermione thought to herself as she rolled her eyes at Fleur's smug look.

"Good day champions!" Dumbledore smiled as he burst through the tent, startling the four students. "Gather round please." He waved them over and they obediently obliged as the other headmasters joined them.

Fleur watched Hermione with an amused twinkle in her eye as she was pushed in with the group and the golden girl shifted nervously; it was obvious Dumbledore was unaware of her presence and she was definitely not supposed to be in the tent.

"Now you've waited, you've wondered, and at last the moment has arrived." He spoke as he looked around at the students. "A moment that only the four of you could appreciate."

"Four?" Madame Maxime frowned.

Dumbledore faltered for a moment as he took another look at the group, his eyes filling with confusion when he saw Hermione shrink in on herself. "Miss Granger, what are you doing here?"

Fleur had to stop herself from laughing at the embarrassment written all over Hermione's features.

"S-sorry. I'll just . . . " Hermione blushed furiously as she stepped away slowly. "Go." She gave Harry's hand one last reassuring squeeze and smiled at him before shifting her gaze to a very amused veela and serious Krum. 'Good luck.' She mouthed in Fleur and Krums direction, leaving both champions confused as to who she was talking to.

The blonde and the seeker looked at each other out of the corner of their eye with a scowl, crossing their arms as the tension returned tenfold to the tent and Dumbledore went on with his speech.

/

"Pay up Gin." Hermione grinned as she held out her hand to the grumbling red head.

"That was bloody rigged." Ginny scowled as she counted out what she owed her friend.

"How could that have possibly been rigged?" Hermione laughed. Fleur had performed brilliantly and it turned out the young champion did have good reason to be cocky. She had strutted out into the arena and the second the dragon even started to stand up she put it to sleep with a flick of her wand, calmly walked up, grabbed the golden egg, and walked right back out in the span of three minutes. Viktor on the other hand got thrashed around a bit, earning him a cozy stay in the infirmary, before he was able to subdue his own dragon while Harry all but destroyed Hogwarts when his dragon broke free. He had ruined his broom when the dragon set it on fire, but he still got the egg, and made it out relatively unscathed. Needless to say Fleur finished first, Viktor second, and Harry third. Harry might have finished second if the headmasters weren't so irked about the damage caused that they were surely going to have to fix.

"I don't know." Ginny replied grumpily as she handed Hermione her winnings. "All I know is that drinks are on you tonight . . . and for the rest of the year for that matter."

"I suppose I might be feeling charitable tonight." Hermione said with a wink as she stuffed the money into her robes.

/

The Beuxbatons carriage was filled with excitement and young students popping champagne as they celebrated their champions victory. Fleur stood surrounded by her peers fawning over her even more than they usually do and she couldn't help but smile as she drank in the attention. She had to admit she liked the recognition she was getting for her skills as a witch and not just her looks for once.

She briefly excused herself for a moment and headed to her room to change out of her shorts and tank top in her room. As she was just finishing slipping into her tight white dress that stopped mid-thigh and fluffing her hair in the mirror she heard a bit of a commotion outside. Curious as to what was going on she walked to her window and looked out to see a big group of Hogwarts students hooting and hollering as they walked past the carriage. _'I wonder what zey are up to.'_ She thought to herself as she was about to go back to her friends, but paused when she saw Hermione's bright smile directed at Harry, her arm slung over his shoulder with the other one around Ron as they talked cheerfully and headed down with the rest of the students. She raised an eyebrow as she took note of the brunette's cute outfit which consisted of a gray and red cardigan sweater, a white shirt, and slightly darker gray shorts that showed off her nice legs she liked to look at whenever she was given the chance.

It took only a moment for Fleur to decide she was far too curious to not follow them. She hastily threw on a pair of her favorite white heels, checking herself in the mirror once more to make sure she was presentable before she hurried out of her room and back to the common area where everyone was waiting for her. _**"Grab your things."**_ She said to Veronique and Odette with an excited grin on her face. _**"We're going out."**_

/

"You should have seen the look on McGonagall's face when Harry passed her in the hallway after the task." Ron laughed loudly over the music pumping in The Three Broomsticks, surrounded by Harry, Hermione, and Ginny while the other students mingled and danced as they got plied with fire whiskey and beer. "She's right pissed about the state of Hogwarts."

"You know you probably would have gotten second if you hadn't done that." Hermione grinned over at Harry who was blushing furiously, whether it was from embarrassment or the multiple shots of firewhiskey he took, she wasn't sure.

"It's not like I did it on purpose." Harry whined as he slouched back in his seat. "That bloody thing was going to eat me alive."

"At least you're not staying in the hospital wing tonight." Ron smiled as he nudged his friend. "I would take third place over that any day."

"I'll drink to that." Harry grinned as he poured everyone another shot.

Hermione rolled her eyes and smiled as she picked up her glass with everyone and downed it in one gulp. They had only been there for ten minutes and were already three shots deep when the door the pub opened and a group of gorgeous girls strolled in.

"Guess the celebration is over. First place is here." Ginny smiled cheekily at Harry while Hermione looked up in the direction of the newcomers.

Fleur glided into the pub, immediately catching everyone's attention, looking as flawless as ever. Hermione couldn't help but stare at the veela's attire, looking down at her white heels up to her long legs to the short dress that clung to her curves in all of the right ways. The bright white dress made Fleur's skin look even tanner than it was and showed a generous amount of her cleavage. Bright blue eyes met amber and a small smile spread across Fleur's delicate features as she waved over at the young Gryffindor.

"Bloody Hell." Came a deep voice and a low whistle of appreciation next to Hermione's head. "They don't make them like that here."

"Bill!?" Ron turned and his face split into a wide grin when he saw his two brothers Bill and Charlie leaning over their seats to get a better look at the young champion. "What are you doing here?"

Hermione slightly bristled at the comment, but instead of chiding the older Weasley she decided on filling her glass once more and taking another shot while the boys conversed.

"I came to help Charlie with the dragons." Bill tore his eyes away from the veela to give his brother his full attention. "One damn near bit my arm off." He laughed.

"He was just being playful." Charlie grinned as he bumped his brother.

"Well if that's them being playful, I don't want to see them angry." Bill grimaced.

_**"So that is why you wanted to go out."**_ Veronique spoke to Fleur who was leaning over the bar, ordering her drink while she kept a careful eye on the bookworm.

_**"I have no idea what you're talking about."**_ Fleur smiled over at the raven-haired girl who promptly rolled her eyes.

_**"You're incorrigible."**_ Odette agreed for once with Veronique as she took a sip of her drink.

"I think that blonde is giving me the eye." Bill grinned as he looked back up at the veela who kept glancing in their direction.

"Fleur?" Ginny scoffed. "Nah mate, there's probably just a mirror right behind you."

"Lay off Gin." Hermione glared over at the red-head downing another shot.

"You're just defending her, because she got you a boat ton of money." Ginny shot back.

"How so?" Harry raised an eyebrow at Hermione who was now sinking into her seat, avoiding his gaze.

"She bet against you." Ginny grinned and Harry looked at Hermione, putting a hand to his chest, pretending to be wounded.

"Don't say it like that!" Hermione glared over at the red-head. "I simply placed my money on someone else."

"Hermione, how could you." Harry said exasperatedly.

"Oh, come off it." Hermione laughed as she pushed her friend. "You know I love you."

"Sooooo . . ." Charlie jumped in with a grin. "This means drinks are on Hermione all night right?"

"If that will make everyone feel better, then yes."

"Oi!" Charlie yelled, catching everyone's attention in the bar. "Drinks are on Granger!"

"Charlie!" Hermione hissed at the laughing red-head as everyone in the bar cheered loudly.

"You agreed." Ron smiled as he shrugged.

Hermione let out a sigh as the bartender looked at her from across the room with a questioning look on his face to which Hermione just nodded her head. Money was hardly an issue to her, she just didn't like to flaunt it. After the defeat of Voldemort the ministry saw it fit to fill the golden trio's vault with more money than they knew what to do with.

Her eyes shifted slightly to the side to see Fleur looking at her with an amused twinkle in her eyes as she raised her glass to the bookworm. Hermione lifted her barely touched mug of butterbeer with a roll of her eyes before taking a swig out of it and when she placed it back down said blonde headed their way.

"I suppose I should be zanking you for ze drinks?" Fleur grinned at the brunette.

"Actually, she should be thanking you." Harry laughed, earning a hard shove from Hermione.

Fleur raised an eyebrow at the group. "Oh?"

"Shut up Harry." Hermione warned the now completely inebriated seeker.

"She bet on you getting first." Harry continued on, his grin growing wider when Hermione shrunk in her seat.

"No loyalty." Ron shook his head, trying his best to look disapproving, but the smile tugging at his lips told a different story.

"Oh, piss off." Hermione grumbled.

"I would have done the same." Bill cut in and Fleur's eyes flickered over the older red head, who was handsome enough, leaning across the seat to jump into the conversation. "You were bloody amazing."

"Zank you." Fleur replied curtly, shifting her eyes back to Hermione who had stiffened up.

"Bill Weasley." He jumped in again, putting on his best charming smile as he pushed his arm past Hermione and Harry to hold his hand out to the veela.

"Fleur." She replied as she shook the offered hand politely.

"That's a beautiful name." His smile widened and Hermione grew even more tense. "Is it French?"

"Oui." Fleur said dryly as she retracted her hand and smiled. "What gave eet away?"

Hermione didn't know why she felt this horrible feeling starting to bubble underneath the surface of her skin as she listened to the two converse. _'Is he seriously trying to flirt with her? She clearly isn't interested. How thick can he be?'_

"I know Charlie here volunteered Hermione to pay for everyone's drinks, but I'd be more than happy to pay for your next round. It looks like you're almost empty." Bill continued on, earning him an eye roll from all of his siblings.

"Non." Fleur shrugged off his advances. "I zink 'Ermione owes it to me seeing as I did all ze work and she is reaping all ze benefits." Fleur looked back to the brunette, sending her a wink.

Hermione had to hide her smile behind her butterbeer, feeling slightly smug at the fact Bill got turned down, which seldom happened.

"Congratulations by the way." Harry smiled up drunkenly at the confident veela while Bill slunk back into his seat.

"Merci 'Arry." Fleur finally turned her attention to someone other than Hermione. "I 'ear you put on quite ze show."

"Damn near destroyed Hogwarts." Ron grinned.

"It was quite entertaining though." Charlie jumped in.

"That's one way to put it." Ginny said as she sipped on her butterbeer, earning her a playful glare from Harry.

"What ees zis beverage you are drinking?" Fleur eyed the group curiously as they all sipped from their big mugs.

"Butterbeer mostly." Harry replied as he put his mug down. "With a few shots of firewhiskey thrown in every now and again." He laughed.

"Only a few?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the clearly drunk boy who lived, but if she was honest she would be following close behind him with how many shots she had taken. She could already feel the alcohol warming her body and filling her with a bubbly feeling.

"Well maybe more than a few." Harry grinned over at Hermione.

"Do you want to try some?" Ron piped in, obviously eager to please the veela.

"Oui." Fleur smiled, but instead of taking a fresh mug she reached to the middle of the table and took Hermione's from in front of her.

Hermione could only try to hide her blush and avert her eyes after she got a quick glimpse down Fleur's dress. _'She bloody did that on purpose.'_ She grumbled to herself, but found she wasn't as displeased as she normally would have been. She blamed it on the booze coursing through her veins, loosening her up, and lowering her inhibitions.

"Délicieux." Fleur's voice brought Hermione's eyes back to her as she licked her lips and placed the mug back in front of the blushing brunette.

"I bet." Ginny mumbled with a roll of her eyes as she took a drink from her own mug, earning her a warning look from the bookworm.

" _ **Fleur."**_ Veronique strolled up to the table, placing her hand on the blonde's forearm, catching Hermione's eye. " _ **Odette is insisting you go and dance with her."**_

Fleur looked over her shoulder to see the other veela dancing in the middle of the Hogwarts students, waving her over.

"It seems my presence 'as been requested." Fleur turned back to the group and smiled. "Merci for ze 'ospitality." And with that Fleur was gone, heading to join her friend on the dance floor while Veronique swept away to the bar without giving the group so much as a second glance.

"I don't know what people see in that bloody veela." Ginny grumbled as Hermione sipped her butterbeer, trying to shake off the weird feeling the darker haired girl gave her. "You best throw out that butterbeer by the way. She probably poisoned it."

"Ginny." Harry sighed as he shook his head.

"This butterbeer?" Hermione pulled the beverage away from herself, looking at it with mock surprise on her face. "I didn't even think about that Gin!"

"Yeah-" Ginny started, but Hermione continued on.

"You're totally right! I best throw it out!" Hermione stood up and promptly dumped the liquid over Ginny's shocked head.

"Hermione!" Ginny cried out as she looked up, liquor dripping off her hair and chin as her friends burst into a fit of laughter.

Harry grinned at the pouting chaser. "Serves you right."

"Looks like I'm empty." Hermione smiled as she looked at her glass, ignoring the glare she received from the soaked Weasley. "I best go refill it."

"Does this mean we're even!?" Ginny yelled out after Hermione walking to the bar who proceeded to turn around with a grin and a shrug before going back on track.

It wasn't until Hermione reached the bar that she realized how inebriated she had become. She was more than capable of standing and handling her own, but she could feel the liquor flowing through her, pleasantly buzzing in her system. She leaned forward with a drunk smile, ushering the bartender over to her as she ordered another round.

As he walked to go fill her order Hermione stayed leaning on the bar and looked over to the right to see Fleur dancing with a big smile on her face. She listened to the muggle music filling the pub and watched how the blonde danced in time.

She don't leave makeup  
After her kiss  
All the boys at night  
Think that she's theirs

Hermione couldn't help but notice Fleur was brimming with confidence and pure joy, which she had every right to after that victory. She watched, entranced, as Fleur's golden hair whipped from left to right, but it still looked perfect as it did so.

All the secrets that you keep  
Might get spoken while you sleep

Her eyes drifted lower to how Fleur's hips swayed to the beat and how the muscles in her legs flexed as she moved. Her eyes moved back up to the veela's grinning face only to be caught staring by Fleur Delacour herself.

And all the boys and I  
All the boys and I  
Love her madly

Fleur's grin widened when she caught Hermione's gaze and she continued dancing. Hermione knew she should tear her gaze away from the cocky blonde, but couldn't bring herself to do so when she saw something she thought she would never see; the well reserved Fleur Delacour was being silly.

All the boys and I  
All the girls and I, too  
(Oh, oh!)  
Picture girls we want so badly  
Isn't she a dream come true?

'Moi?' Fleur mouthed at Hermione and pointed to herself in reference to the song making Hermione roll her eyes and look away with a smile as the bartender handed her her drink.

' _Why does she have to be so bloody cute?'_ Hermione thought to herself as she glanced back at the blonde jumping and dancing while she moved her head from left to right. She had imagined the veela would be more of a sensual dancer, but seeing her jump around with the red head, spinning around, and twirling her friend made her think that this suited her much more.

Hermione tried to shake these thoughts from her head as she rejoined her friends who had drank even more firewhiskey in her absence. She tried to listen to them as they talked, she really did, but she constantly felt her gaze being pulled back to the veela everyone was staring at, a dopey smile forming on her face as she watched Fleur dance as if no one was really watching her.

"What do you think 'Mione?" Harry turned with a drunken smile to his friend, making her snap out of her stupor.

"I uh. . . what?" She looked back at her friends and a blush heated up her cheeks when a knowing smile spread across Harry's face.

Ginny raised an eyebrow at the clearly flustered brunette. "Too busy giving Delacour goo goo eyes to listen to your friends?"

"I was doing no such thing Ginny." Hermione hissed back.

"Yeah, neither was I." Charlie grinned as he nudged Bill.

"I wasn't." Hermione grumbled as she slouched back in her seat, her eyes briefly flicking back up to Fleur before she turned her attention back to her friends.

/

"That has to be the hundredth bloke to try to talk to that Delacour girl." Charlie laughed as he watched yet another patron get rejected with a simple wave from the blonde veela.

"Yeah, that happens a lot." Hermione said with a slight slur, her eyes a little glassy from the hours of drinking. It was now one am and she had been sneaking glances at the Beuxbatons champion all night.

"Say Hermione." Charlie grinned as he jumped over the barrier between them and wedged himself between Ron and the brunette eyeing him suspiciously. "Why don't you give it a go?"

Hermione just scoffed into her butterbeer as Harry grinned from ear to ear.

"That's what I've been saying mate."

"Please don't start this again." Hermione sighed.

Ginny looked absolutely shocked by Harry and Charlie's statements. "You don't seriously think Hermione should give it a go with Fleur do you Harry?"

"Why not?" He shrugged with a sloppy smile. "She's bloody brilliant."

Hermione just rolled her eyes as Ginny and Harry got into a mini argument and turned her attention back to the blonde who was starting to seem annoyed by the constant barrage of people pestering her. She watched curiously as Fleur walked out of the pub with her head held high and couldn't help but feel a pull in her chest.

She brought her attention back to her friends who were going back and forth on the same subject of Fleur Delacour, arguing about what Hermione should do. She tried to bite her tongue, but the liquor in her had other plans. "Stop talking about my love life as if its your own." She stood up with a growl, glaring at Harry and Ginny. "I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions."

"We didn't mean it like that 'Mione." Harry frowned.

"We're just looking out for your best interest." Ginny replied, looking sheepish.

"Well don't." Hermione picked up one more shot of firewhiskey, downed it, and slammed the now empty glass onto the table before she decided she would go outside herself.

"Where are you going?" Ron yelled after the brunette heading towards the door.

"None of your business." Hermione shot back as she pushed open the door only to see Fleur Delacour leaning against the wall with a cigarette between her lips.

"Mademoiselle Granger." Fleur's velvety voice filled Hermione's ears. "What brings you out 'ere?"

"It's a free country isn't it?" Hermione scoffed as she crossed her arms and leaned on the wall next to the blonde, relishing in the cool air against her warm skin.

"I suppose." Fleur replied with a small smile as she took a drag and blew out the smoke, looking up at the sky.

"They drive me bloody insane sometimes." Hermione broke of her own accord, the liquor making her lips loosen.

"Who?" Fleur looked back at the brunette avoiding her gaze.

"My friends." Hermione grumbled.

"They wouldn't be your friends eef zey didn't drive you crazy sometimes zough." Fleur replied with a shrug.

"I suppose you're right." Hermione sighed, her eyes shifting over to the blonde looking back up at the sky glistening with stars. She forgot all of her frustration as she was stricken once more by how beautiful Fleur Delacour really is, especially under the moonlight. "You uh . . ." Hermione cleared her throat when Fleur's bright eyes focused back on her. "You couldn't seem to catch a break tonight huh?"

Fleur just laughed as she blew out more smoke. "Non. Zat ees why I snuck out. Well zat and . . ." She held up her hand with the cigarette between her fingers.

"That's a disgusting habit."

Fleur had half a mind to flick the cigarette away to please the young Gryffindor, but before she got the chance Hermione snatched the cigarette from her hand. Fleur's brows rose high up on her head as the bookworm took a long drag and slowly blew out the smoke. ' _You are just full of surprises 'Ermione Granger.'_

"Do you want to get out of here?" Hermione's question surprised the veela who was already watching her in awe.

"Oui." Fleur's response was automatic, causing a small smile to tug at Hermione's lips as she flicked the cigarette away.

"Follow me then."

/

"'ermione, where are you taking me?" Fleur frowned as they approached the forbidden forest.

"It's a surprise." Hermione replied with a shrug as she crossed the threshold of the forest and Fleur paused with wide eyes.

"I zought zis forest ees forbidden."

"It is." Hermione turned around and had to stop herself from laughing at the look on Fleur's face. "Don't tell me that Fleur Delacour, conqueror of dragons, is afraid of a little dark forest."

"I'm not afraid." Fleur huffed as she moved forward and stepped over the root of a tree sticking out of the ground. "I am just not een ze proper attire for a stroll zrough ze woods."

"It's not my fault you came over-dressed to a pub." Hermione grinned at the inebriated veela trying to walk through the soft dirt in her high heels. "Oh Merlin, just take off your bloody heels."

"Non." Fleur put her nose up, trying to look as dignified as possible as she passed the brunette.

"Suit yourself." Hermione shrugged, holding back her grin as she watched Fleur's legs wobble every now and then when her heels dipped in a little too low.

/

"'Ow much furzer ees zis place?" Fleur grumbled; after twenty minutes of walking her feet were starting to ache despite her drunken state.

"Not much further princess." Hermione rolled her eyes playfully at the veela.

"I prefer your majesty." Fleur replied and promptly stuck her tongue out at Hermione when she turned to look at her, causing the brunette to burst into a fit of giggles.

"You're lucky you're funny." Hermione shot back. "Otherwise I might leave you for the spiders."

"Spiders?" Fleur's face visibly paled.

"Oui." Hermione replied with a coy smile on her face.

"Surely you are kidding." Fleur looked over her shoulder as she rubbed her arms.

"Oh, I'm definitely not." Hermione laughed. "Ron and Harry had a nasty run in with them our second year, but don't worry, they're huge so they won't really be able to sneak up on you."

"Good to know." Fleur spoke quietly as she discreetly picked up her pace to bring herself closer to the golden girl.

Fleur spent the rest of the walk looking over her shoulder so much that she didn't notice Hermione stop and ran right into her back. "Ees eet a spider?" She asked as she quickly pulled out her wand.

"Relax Fleur." Hermione sighed at the tightly wound blonde. "We're here."

Fleur slowly lowered her wand and took a step forward as they entered a clearing with a lake that was filled with different colors from red to blue to purple. "What ees zis place?" She asked with wonder in her voice and she stepped towards the edge of the water.

"I'm still not quite sure." Hermione shrugged as she took off her gray and red cardigan sweater.

Fleur opened her mouth to say something more, but her mouth hung open as she watched Hermione Granger grab the bottom of her white shirt and pull it over her head slowly. ' _Ees zis a dream?'_ Fleur thought to herself as the material hit the ground, exposing the tan, glowing skin of her back.

Hermione leaned down as she slowly pulled down her gray shorts, leaving Fleur to gape at the young Gryffindor clad in only her red lingerie, giving Fleur a perfect view of Hermione's shapely butt and long slender legs. She stood up straight at the edge of the lake and Fleur couldn't help but think of how much the golden girl resembled a mystical water nymph at the moment.

"Well?" Hermione raised an eyebrow and looked at the blushing blonde over her shoulder.

"Are you sure eet's safe?" Was the only stupid question Fleur could think to ask.

Fleur could only watch with a glazed look in her eyes as Hermione rolled her eyes with a smile before she walked over to a rock hanging over the lake. She stood at the edge for a moment while Fleur raked her eyes up Hermione's slender figure, taking in the sight of her surprisingly toned stomached, dainty shoulders, medium bust, and a pink mark in the middle of Hermione's chest that caught the veela's sharp gaze, but before she could evaluate the mark Hermione dove straight into the water.

The second Hermione's body disappeared under the water a red hue surrounded the area she had entered, leaving Fleur's drunken brain to scramble to figure out what happened. "'Ermione!?" She called out as she walked closer to the edge. ' _Did she 'it 'er 'ead on a rock?'_

Before Fleur could worry too much Hermione popped right back up with a smile on her face, treading water, without a gash or open wound.

"Why ees eet red around you?" Fleur frowned.

"Come in and see for yourself." Hermione shrugged. "Or are you too afraid?" She raised an eyebrow as she dipped her head lower in the water so only her amused amber eyes were visible.

"Don't be ridiculous." Fleur huffed as she carefully took off her heals and reached back to unzip her dress.

Hermione's golden eyes darkened slightly and was very happy her mouth was hidden under the water so Fleur couldn't see her mouth hanging open as she slowly slid out of her dress, showing off that delicious body clad in matching blue lingerie Hermione remembered from the prefects bathroom.

Fleur felt her cheeks redden at the Gryffindor's stare. Usually, she wore her skin like armor, and was eager to show it off, but for some reason, having Hermione watch her so closely made her feel oddly exposed. She tried to shake off the unfamiliar feeling as she shimmied out of her dress and hung it over a nearby tree before she slowly walked into the water; she would not blindly jump into terrain she was unsure about.

As she got in further her eyes widened as a bright blue hue filled the water surrounding her. "Why ees eet doing zis?"

"Honestly, I'm not quite sure yet." Hermione found her voice despite the beautiful imagine of Fleur Delacour in just her lingerie entering the water. "I have a theory though."

"Oh?" Fleur raised an eyebrow as she got further in and started treading water.

"I hate to say this, because it makes me sound like Luna, but I think it's your aura."

"My aura?" Fleur looked confused as she looked back down at the bright blue and as she got closer she noticed Hermione's red and her blue mixing into a light magenta.

"Yeah, normally its viewed as a more spiritual thing, but I guess this lake manifests it into a physical form."

Fleur looked back up to Hermione, her arctic eyes brimming with curiosity, but once again light pink caught Fleur's attention. Right in the middle of Hermione's chest there was a small line about three inches long marring her perfect skin. Fleur quickly looked away, feeling rude for staring at the mark, but couldn't stop her mind from wandering. ' _Ow een ze world did she come upon zat scar?'_

"'Ow did you come upon zis place?" Fleur asked instead of the question burning inside of her foggy head.

"I just came upon it one day when I was taking a stroll." Hermione moved to float on her back, looking up at the bright night sky littered with stars.

"So you wander dark forests often?" Fleur raised an eyebrow, making a grin spread across Hermione's face.

"Often enough."

' _You are an odd one 'Ermione Granger.'_ Fleur thought to herself as she followed suit and floated on her back in the warm water. She felt her veela purr contentedly as her arctic eyes took in the clearly visible milky way and twinkling lights. "Eet ees quite beautiful 'ere."

Hermione just hummed her agreement as her drunken body relaxed and let the water take it where ever it wanted to. Her amber eyes flickered to the right and in her drunken haze she saw Fleur looking just as content as she felt. "I like to come here when the pressure from . . everything becomes too much. I figured you could use it too."

"I am surprised you would show me zis place." Fleur's arctic eyes shifted to lock with Hermione's golden ones. "I zought you-"

"You zought wrong Mademoiselle Delacour." Hermione cut Fleur off, mocking her French accent with a smirk.

"Is zat supposed to be moi?" Fleur asked with a grin.

"Oui." Hermione smiled as she nodded her head. "What gave eet away?"

"Bloody 'ell."

Hermione burst into a fit of laughter when Fleur failed horribly at a British accent. "And that's me?"

"Oui." Fleur smiled. "Eet ees what you sound like."

"Yeah, it was dead on." Hermione replied mockingly as she started treading water again and Fleur followed suit. They were only ten feet away from each other as Fleur watched the young prodigy curiously. She was beyond surprised that they were talking so easily to each other just like they had weeks before. "So, tell me Mademoiselle Delacour, are you as bad as they say? I'm dying to know."

Hermione's blunt question completely threw the veela off guard and she shifted her eyes to the right before she looked back to Hermione. "Are you?"

"I asked first." Hermione swam just a little bit closer making the veela in Fleur stir. The atmosphere seemed to shift and Fleur could tell their game of cat and mouse had reversed on her as blue and red started to slowly merge.

"People say many zings, eet does not mean zey are true." Fleur danced around the question. "I do as I please and some don't approve of zat."

"Like your sister?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.

"What ees zis? Some British game?" Fleur huffed.

"Perhaps." Hermione grinned. "Answer the question."

"Only eef you answer mine first." Fleur shot Hermione a challenging look to which Hermione shrugged.

"Go ahead."

"Where did you get zat scar?" Fleur frowned, her eyes drifting down to Hermione's chest before looking back to Hermione's eyes. For a brief second, amber glazed over and Hermione seemed to go somewhere else entirely just like they did at the lake, but she quickly shook it off.

"I tripped while running with scissors." Hermione replied, trying to hold back her smile when she saw Fleur roll her eyes at her answer.

"You're not going to give me a straight forward answer are you?" Fleur didn't sound upset, just curious by the brunette's behavior.

"No." Hermione replied with a small smile.

"Zat 'ardly seems fair."

"Well . . ." Hermione spoke as she swam forward, slowly decreasing the space between the two. "I'll show you mine, if you show me yours."

Fleur felt her cheeks heat up at the double meaning of what Hermione just said. "Ees eet zat bad?" Fleur somehow found her voice which had gotten caught in her throat at the proximity between the two now that they were a mere foot away from each other and blue and red completely merged into magenta surrounding them.

"Worse." Hermione spoke softly and as they locked eyes Fleur's arctic blues started to glow that bright neon color as her veela became excited. "Why did your sister say those awful things about you?"

Fleur's eyes flickered down to Hermione's lips that asked such a difficult and painful question she didn't want to even think about. "We used to be close." Fleur licked her lips as her glowing eyes shifted back up to Hermione's. "I grew up and we grew apart. Eets zat simple."

"You're a bad liar." The side of Hermione's mouth quirked up into a half smile.

"Eet ees not a lie."

"But it's not the whole truth either." Hermione shot back with a raised eyebrow as the two hovered around each other. "Is telling the truth that bad?"

Fleur's eyes stayed firmly on Hermione's own probing gaze as she replied just as quietly as Hermione had. "Worse."

"Hmmmm." Hermione hummed as she eyed the veela carefully in her drunken stupor. "I like it better when you're being genuine."

"Oh?" Fleur asked as Hermione got even closer to the point that there was barely any space between them and their legs brushed between kicks to keep them afloat, nearly driving the veela insane.

"And the way your eyes glow." Hermione spoke as she seemed to stare deep into Fleur's soul through her bright orbs. "Why do they do that?"

"It's the veela . . ." Fleur replied honestly for once. "Eet's um . . ." ' _Excited.'_ Fleur licked her lips as her eyes flickered back down to Hermione's cherry red lips that looked so enticing that she was finding it difficult to focus. "Eet's intrigued."

"Is it now?"

Fleur's heart started pounding in her chest as Hermione face subtly grew closer. The apex predator in her was screaming for her to lean in the rest of the way and capture Hermione's sweet lips; to claim her as her own. The golden girl was hers for the taking, it would be so easy to push her against the rock and take her the way she wanted to, but the smell of whiskey on Hermione's breath invaded Fleur's senses and in that moment she knew that it would be wrong. It wouldn't be an actual conquest or consensual. It was painfully obvious now that Hermione Granger was completely smashed and would probably not remember a single moment from tonight, so much to the veela inside of hers annoyance, Fleur drew back.

"Eet ees quite late 'Ermione." Fleur looked off to the side when she saw the disappointed look cross Hermione's face. "Per'aps I should get you back to ze castle."

"And get me detention with Snape?" Hermione bounced back quickly. "No way. I'll just stay here."

"Zis ees no place to sleep Mademoiselle Granger."

"Fine." Hermione waved Fleur off as she just about stumbled out of the water to throw her clothes back on while Fleur reluctantly followed suit. "I'll just stay with you."

"Moi?" Fleur almost fell over as she was putting her heals back on. She looked over at the drunken girl, shock written all over her face as Hermione casually threw her cardigan sweater back on.

"Will that be a problem?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the blushing champion.

"N-non." Fleur shook her head, trying to seem as collected as possible.

"Good." Hermione huffed as she marched back towards the carriage. "And don't get any funny ideas." She sent Fleur a warning look who was struggling to keep up with her.

"S'il vous plaît." Fleur rolled her eyes. ' _I guess we are back to ze usual banter.' "_ I am not some deviant Mademoiselle Granger."

/

It took a little longer than expected for them to find their way out of the forest than it did to find their way in seeing as the alcohol had hit Hermione a little later than expected, but eventually they made it to the carriage.

Fleur frantically tried to hush the inebriated Gryffindor who was completely enamored by the elegant set up of the carriage as they made their way inside. "Bloody hell . . ." Hermione whistled as she looked up in wonder at the giant crystal chandelier hanging above them. "You guys definitely don't spare any expenses on your décor."

"'Ermione." Fleur whispered, hoping the golden girl might get the que to lower her voice.

"It's a bit over the top don't you think?" Hermione turned back to Fleur.

"Oui." Fleur nodded as they walked down the hallway. "But you must remember to keep your voice down 'Ermione. You do not want to deal wiz Madame Maxine at zree een ze morning. Eet ees not pleasant."

"You've had some experience with that eh?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the blonde looking left and right for anyone lingering in the hallway. "Do you sneak people into your room late at night very often?"

"I am going to pretend you didn't just ask me zat Mademoiselle Granger." Fleur shot the pouting girl a warning look as they finally reached her room.

"I'll take that as a yes." Hermione frowned as they entered Fleur's immaculate room filled with books and art all over the wall.

"Take eet any way you want." Fleur rolled her eyes. "We need to get you out of zose wet clothes."

"I thought I told you not to-"

Fleur simply grabbed a tank top and shorts and shoved them into Hermione's hands before she could finish her sentence. "I will go change in ze bazroom. Let me know when you are done." And with that Fleur swept away before Hermione could protest.

She quickly changed in the bathroom and brushed out her hair, sighing as she looked in the mirror. The veela in her was thoroughly upset with her for skipping such a perfect opportunity to take advantage of Hermione Granger, but Fleur refused to cross that line. She may be many things, but she did not take advantage of someone when they were not in their right mind.

She stood there for a few more moments, trying to grasp what had transpired that evening, waiting for Hermione to call out to her, but frowned when the drunken girl said nothing. When the long silence grew too suspicious Fleur hesitantly opened the door, peaking her head out only to see Hermione Granger in her red lingerie lying face down, completely passed out in her bed with the clothes she had given her on the floor.

"Stubborn girl." Fleur shook her head as she tossed her clothes on the dresser and climbed into bed herself.

She tried to close her eye to go to sleep, but she found the task difficult when her bright orbs opened and fixed themselves on the slumbering form of Hermione. Her wet hair was sprawled out on her pillow, gripping the sheet tightly in her fist, and her brow was furrowed as if she was upset even in her sleep.

Before Fleur could question what she was doing she carefully reached forward and ran her thumb along the crease of Hermione's forehead, making the golden girl's face and body relax almost immediately.

A small smile crossed Fleur's face as Hermione loosened her hold on the sheet and let out a soft sigh. ' _Why must she be so cute even een 'er sleep?'_

Fleur blushed at her own thought, inwardly scolding herself for being even slightly sentimental. She closed her eyes tightly, desperately trying to block out those unwanted thoughts when she felt the bed shift and a weight press itself on her shoulder.

Her arctic eyes popped open to see Hermione Granger resting her head on her shoulder with a dreamy smile on her face as she threw her arm and leg over the shocked veela. She panicked on the inside, unsure of what to do in such a situation. She was in no way used to 'cuddling' with people and this was a huge offense, but in that moment something strange took over the blonde.

Instead of the usual urge to conquer, a more primal urge came forth to shelter and protect as she slowly lifted her arms, and wrapped them around the inebriated girl. She had never felt more confused in her life; she didn't know why she felt so comforted by the feeling of Hermione's soft warm skin pressed against her own. It made no sense why, when she lifted up her shaking hand and ran her fingers through brown locks and Hermione let out a content sigh, she all but swooned.

Her body felt as if it was relaxing for the first time and her eyelids started growing heavier and heavier by the second. She tried to fight the feeling, but it seemed the harder she fought, the quicker she started to nod off. ' _What een ze world are you doing to me 'Ermione Granger?'_ Was the last thought that drifted through Fleur's mind as she finally caved in and slipped into a deep sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooooo many things are happening ;-; I was so stoked to finally get to write Hermione and Fleur becoming a little more romantic even if alcohol kind of had to be involved haha It looks like Hermione isn't as good as Fleur thinks she is and Fleur isn't as bad as Hermione thinks she is either and both of them are holding on to some secrets :3 Anyways, I would adore to hear your guys' thoughts on this chapter :)


	11. Nervous Breakdown

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, sorry for the delay on the update. I usually try to post one chapter in the morning, one in the afternoon, and one in the evening, but my motorcycle was calling to me haha Anyways, I'm so glad you guys enjoyed Hermione and Fleur's little encounter at the lake! Now, let's see the aftermath :3   
> The song that inspired this chapter is Nervous Breakdown by Black Flag   
> As always, French is in bold and italics while thoughts are just in italics :)

Sun beams streamed in through curtains in a room painted royal blue, slowly stirring a young veela awake. The first thing Fleur registered was the slight headache prodding at her temple, the second was her freedom of movement. She groaned as she rolled over, reaching over for a body she was sure was there, but artic eyes popped open when the only thing her hand grabbed was cold sheets.

She sat up, head foggy, as she rubbed her tired eyes. ' _Where did she go? Was eet all a dream?'_ Fleur frowned as she looked around the room, but the gray and red cardigan sweater lying on her floor proved that the events from the night before had indeed happened.

The second she saw the discarded clothing she felt her heart sink deep into her stomach. ' _She just left wizout saying anyzing?'_

She didn't know why the awful feeling of hurt and betrayal slithered under her skin, filling her with doubt. She had left many a person in the morning after vigorous activities the night before without any explanation herself, but having it done to her was something completely new and unfamiliar. The two didn't even do anything other than cuddle so why did it bother her so much that Hermione slipped out while she was asleep?

She leaned down and picked up the clothing, staring at the cardigan as if it would have some answers to these weird feelings. ' _She was in such a rush she forgot zis.'_ Fleur's frown deepened. ' _Was waking up next to me zat bad?'_

A soft knock on the door pulled Fleur from her thoughts and she hastily hid the sweater under her pillow, putting on a neutral face, as Odette poked her head inside.

" _ **Oh good, you're up."**_ Odette smiled at her alpha. " _ **How are you feeling?"**_

" _ **Like that dragon thrashed me around."**_ Fleur grimaced as she stood up, rubbing her temples.

" _ **I thought that might be the case."**_ Odette spoke as she walked into the room carrying water and a potion. " _ **This should help with that nasty hangover."**_

" _ **Thank you."**_ Fleur smiled gratefully at the red head as she quickly downed the potion and drank the water offered to her. " _ **You're too kind."**_

Odette just shrugged, happy to please and help her alpha. " _ **You've done the same for me many times. Perhaps we should get some breakfast in you. It will make you feel a lot better, I promise."**_

" _ **That sounds great. I'm starving."**_ Fleur spoke as she placed the glass on her dresser. " _ **Let me just take a shower and I will meet you there."**_

Odette nodded her head as she left the room while Fleur's gaze shifted back to the pillow where she knew Hermine's cardigan was hidden under. She swiftly walked to the bed and pulled it out, looking at it once more with an unreadable look on her face. ' _What do I care anyways?'_ She huffed as she marched back to her dresser and stuffed it into a random drawer before she turned on the shower and jumped in.

When she walked back in and got dressed, she felt a breeze hit her skin, and twisted her head to see her curtains fluttering in the wind. ' _I left zat open last night?'_ She frowned as she eyed her room suspiciously before slamming the window closed, and headed to the dining hall where her friends were waiting.

" _ **Well, well, well, look who finally decided to join us."**_ Veronique smirked behind her cup of orange juice. " _ **Where did you slip off to last night?"**_ She eyed the blonde suspiciously who stiffened at the mention of her disappearance.

Fleur quickly tried to collect herself as she loaded her plate, very aware of the raven-haired girl watching her with a very scrutinizing gaze. " _ **I was tired so I went back to the carriage."**_

" _ **No you didn't."**_ Veronique shot back challengingly. " _ **I checked your room last night and you weren't there."**_

" _ **So you're stalking me now?"**_ Fleur glared over at her friend.

" _ **Testy aren't you?"**_ Veronique raised an eyebrow at Fleur's behavior.

" _ **Leave her alone Veronique."**_ Odette sighed. " _ **She's tired."**_

" _ **I bet."**_ Veronique scoffed and Fleur rolled her eyes.

The blonde tried to look discreetly across the room to see if she could get a glimpse of light brown hair at the Gryffindor table, but frowned when she couldn't see the young prodigy anywhere.

/

"Where in the bloody hell have you been!?" Ginny cried out making Hermione wince as she walked into the Gryffindor common room.

"Can you please keep your voice down?" Hermione grumbled, pinching the bridge of her nose, trying to alleviate her growing headache as she walked up to her room.

"Geeze . . ." Ginny frowned as she looked at Hermione up and down as she followed close behind. "You look like a right mess."

Hermione just shot the red-head a glare out of the corner of her eye as she entered her room. She couldn't really argue with her friend, she was sure she looked terrible and she in fact did. Her hair was a mess, her outfit was covered in mud, and she looked like death incarnate.

"Mind telling me where you were all night and what happened for . . ." Ginny pulled a long twig out of Hermione's hair. "this to happen?" Ginny raised an eyebrow, inspecting the twig in her hand before tossing it aside while Hermione plopped down onto her bed, burying her head in a pillow with complete disregard for getting her sheets dirty.

"Can you please save the inquisition for later?" Hermione mumbled into her pillow.

"I'll have you know I've been up all night worried sick!" Ginny frowned, crossing her arms while Hermione pushed her head up, giving the chaser a look that said she didn't believe her. "Well, maybe the last hour, but still!"

"I don't want to talk about it." Hermione sighed. "I just want to get some sleep."

"Hermione Granger is sneaking into the dorms early in the morning and now you want to sleep in?" Ginny pulled out her wand and pointed it at the bookworm burying her head in a pillow to block out the noise. "Who are you and what have you done with my friend?"

"Piss off Ginny!" Hermione yelled into the pillow, holding it tighter to her head.

"Come on, what happened?" Ginny whined.

"If I tell you, will you promise to get me a hangover potion and then leave me alone for the rest of the day?" Hermione continued speaking into the pillow.

"Fine."

Hermione lifted her head once more and eyed Ginny carefully. "And you can't tell anyone."

"Sure, sure." Ginny waved the hungover girl's concerns off.

"I mean it Gin!" Hermione's gaze hardened. "If you tell a single person I will find out and I WILL hex you."

"I won't tell anyone." Ginny held up her hand. "Scouts honor."

"Fine." Hermione sighed as she sat up, wincing when the sunlight pierced her.

/

Hermione woke in the morning when she heard birds chirping; briefly wondering when the birds decided to perch outside of the Gryffindor tower and when did her bed become so stiff?

She groggily opened her eyes as she slowly pushed herself up; her ambers popping wide open when she saw Fleur Delacour lying beneath her, slumbering peacefully with her arms wrapped around her waist. ' _ **What the bloody hell?'**_

Hermione's first instinct was to quickly scramble away, but thought better of it in case she woke the sleeping veela so she slowly and very carefully disentangled herself and sat on the edge of the bed only to see herself clad in her red lingerie and nothing else. ' _No, no, no. There's no way that I . . .'_ Her cheeks heated up as she desperately tried to recall the night before. The last thing she remembered was yelling at Harry and Ginny before she stormed outside and then bright blue eyes looking at her as she stepped into the cold; after that it was a blank.

She looked back to the slumbering blonde, furrowing her brow as she watched her sleep. ' _What the bloody hell did we do? How did I end up . . . like this?'_ Her eyes widened and she was sure she was going to die of embarrassment when she saw a puddle of drool she left on Fleur's shoulder.

' _I have to get out of here before she wakes up.'_ Hermione thought frantically to herself as she stood up, but regretted it almost immediately when a piercing headache hit her. ' _I'm never drinking again.'_ She inwardly groaned to herself as she grabbed the clothing she could find on the ground that was hers and threw it on. She looked around for another moment, searching for her cardigan, but a stirring Fleur interrupted her search. ' _Shit! What do I do?'_ Hermione looked around the room desperately for somewhere to hide.

Her heart pounded in her chest as Fleur groaned and rolled over, drawing Hermione's eyes back to her. ' _Fuck.'_ Hermione quickly dropped to the ground and crawled under the veela's bed right before she opened her eyes.

She tried to breathe as softly as she could so Fleur wouldn't hear her as she shifted on the bed. ' _If she finds me under here, I swear I'm going to die.'_ Hermione thought with a blush when she suddenly caught sight of her cardigan. She briefly glanced up before she moved forward and slowly started to reach her hand out to grab the clothing, but quickly snapped it back when Fleur leaned down and picked it up and someone knocked on the door. ' _Just my bloody luck.'_

Hermione all but held her breath as she listened to Odette and Fleur converse in French; she briefly wondered how long she would have to stay under there and how in the world she was going to slip out of the carriage without any of the other Beuxbatons students catching her.

Once again, she heard the door open and close, signaling Odette's departure. Her heart started pounding in her chest as she watched Fleur's feet hastily walk towards her. _'Shit! Does she know I'm here!?'_ Hermione could only watch on, dread slowly filling her as Fleur stood next to the bed, her heart beating harder and faster the longer the blonde stood there.

She almost let out a sigh relief when Fleur changed her path to her dresser, stuffed something in there by the sound of it, and headed into her bathroom. When she heard the shower turn on she decided to make her move and quickly scrambled out from under the bed.

Hermione frantically looked around for her cardigan, but it was now nowhere in sight and she was not going to risk an awkward conversation for that sweater so she focused her attention on making her escape. She peaked out the door to see students littering the hallway so she quickly closed the door, ruling that option out when she saw the window across from her.

' _Of course.'_ Hermione sighed as she made her way over to said window and opened it as quietly as possible. She poked her head out and frowned when she saw it was a good twelve feet from the ground. ' _This is sketchy at best . . .'_ She went to bring her head back into the carriage, but the sound of the shower being turned off made her panic and jump, resulting in her hitting her head on the window sill above her, increasing the pain from her headache tenfold.

' _This has to be the dumbest thing I've ever done.'_ She groaned as she rubbed the back of her head and looked behind her shoulder one last time, still unsure of what to do, but the sound of footsteps heading towards the bathroom door spurred her into action. "Bloody hell." She cried out as she not so gracefully fell out of the window and landed hard on her back in the mud, effectively knocking the wind out of her.

"Definitely never drinking again." Hermione gasped out between forced breaths as she looked up at the sun blaring through her eyes, straight into her brain.

' _At least I didn't break anything.'_ She sighed as she slowly stood up and looked down to see herself completely covered in the wet earth. "Perfect." Hermione grumbled as she tried to wipe herself off before she slipped around, trying to make her way back to the castle as gracefully as possible.

She ignored all the weird looks she received as she walked, well more like stumbled, up the stairs to the Gryffindor common room. She never thought she would be so happy to see the fat lady looking at her with barely veiled disgust. She uttered the password and almost let out a sigh of relief when she made her way inside, but the feeling of relief was very short lived and she was immediately ambushed by Ginevra Weasley.

/

"Bloody hell . . ." Ginny's looked at Hermione with wide green eyes. "Did you and Fleur . . ." Ginny gulped. "You know?"

"I have no idea Ginny." Hermione blushed.

"Well does . . ." Ginny looked at Hermione's crotch pointedly. "it hurt? Are you sore?"

"Ginevra Weasley!" Hermione cried out, hitting Ginny with a pillow in the head as her face heated up even more, making her resemble a tomato. "N-no! And why would I be if my first time was with a girl?"

"Well, I mean there are spells so that you can-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence." Hermione glared at the red-head holding her hands up defensively.

"I'm just trying to cover all my bases here 'Mione." Ginny rubbed the back of her neck. "I'm surprised is all. This sounds like a mess Harry or Ron would get into, not you. I'm very disappointed in you Hermione Granger." Ginny tried to put on her best disapproving look, but the hard glare she received in return made her back down.

"I don't even know if . . . THAT happened!"

"Well, do you have any hickeys or marks?" Ginny raised an eyebrow as she leaned in closer, moving Hermione's hair to check her neck, but Hermione promptly slapped the red-head's hand away. "I'm just trying to help 'Mione." Ginny chided. "And it doesn't look like there are any marks so that's a good sign. I'm sure that dirty veela would mark you up if she had done anything. I ought to-"

"Don't." Hermione cut off Ginny's rant before she could get too far. "I can handle this myself."

"Well, obviously not." Ginny shot back. "Someone needs to teach that veela a lesson."

"We don't even know what happened."

"Oh, I know what happened." Ginny stood up, clenching her fists. "That damned veela took advantage of you!"

"But I don't have any marks and I'm not sore or anything Gin." Hermione was unsure why she was suddenly defending Fleur. "And you said you wouldn't say anything!" '

Ginny glanced at her friend and saw her distress at her famous Weasley temper. "I won't." Ginny let out a sigh, letting her shoulders relax. "Sorry 'Mione. I just got heated for a second. I'll get you your potion and in the meantime you should consider taking a shower." A small smile crossed Ginny's face. "You really look like you need one."

"Yeah, yeah." Hermione grumbled as she got up and headed to the showers while Ginny went on her mission.

When she returned to her room after a much needed cleaning she was very happy to see a potion sitting on her bedside table with a little note attached saying 'Drink me' and no Ginevra Weasley in sight. ' _Thank Merlin. Now, I can finally get some rest.'_ She thought to herself as she chugged the liquid down greedily. She grimaced at the bitter after taste as she placed the now empty bottle down and crawled into her bed, falling asleep almost instantly.

/

Hermione grumbled as she woke up and slowly sat up in her bed, rubbing her eyes. She looked out the window and the bright light streaming in, feeling more confused than she had been when she went to sleep.

Her dreams consisted of flashes of neon blue eyes that glowed so bright she swore they would burn her, glimpses of blonde hair in the moonlight, and brief glances at plump pink lips that she itched to kiss so badly. ' _What in the hell happened?'_ Hermione frowned as she recalled a feeling of weightlessness. ' _Did we go swimming?'_

"Well, well, well." Ginny's voice broke Hermione from her groggy thoughts. "Look who is finally up."

Hermione looked over to the red-head leaning against the frame of her bed. "What do you mean Gin?" Hermione glanced over at her clock to see she had only slept for an hour. "I've barely slept at all."

"If by barely any sleep you mean all day yesterday to this morning, then yes." Ginny laughed. "You must have been up insanely late."

"Shut up Gin." Hermione blushed as she got up. "I really can't handle you poking and prodding me right now."

"Alright, alright." Ginny held up her hands. "How 'bout we get you some breakfast. You must be starving."

"That's an understatement." Hermione grumbled as she threw on some fresh clothes and headed down to the dining hall with Ginny.

When they entered she immediately felt all eyes on her, including a pair of bright sapphires boring a hole into her skull which she ignored, even though she desperately wanted to look over to the Ravenclaw table to see if she would get any answers. "Why is everyone looking at me?" Hermione spoke quietly to Ginny as they headed to their table. "You said you wouldn't say anything."

"I didn't." Ginny hissed back, eyeing the room suspiciously. "I haven't the foggiest as to why everyone is looking at you. Do you think Delacour said something?"

Hermione paled at the thought of Fleur bragging about bedding Hermione Granger to the entire school. "S-she wouldn't."

"You sure about that?" Ginny raised an eyebrow as they sat across from a very irritated looking Harry and Ron.

"There you are!" Ron's booming voice almost made Hermione jump in her seat. "We've been wondering where in the bloody hell you were."

"I was sleeping." Hermione spoke as she loaded up her plate. "Why were you looking for me?"

"Well, there have been some nasty rumors going around." Ron grumbled as he stuffed his face. "I can't believe the things they're saying about you 'Mione."

"W-what?" Hermione almost choked on her food. ' _She said something!?'_

"Yeah, it's a load of rubbish." Harry nodded his head in agreement with his arms crossed. "I can't believe the nerve of that woman."

"What woman?" Hermione could feel her cheeks starting to heat up. "What are people saying?"

"You're not going to like it." Harry's face softened when he saw the worry written all over Hermione's face.

"Just tell us!" Ginny snapped, glaring at the two boys who now looked sheepish.

"Best if you see for yourselves." Harry mumbled as he passed the Sunday edition of The Daily Prophet across the table to Hermione.

Ginny spat out her drink while Hermione's eyes widened. "Golden trio becomes golden love triangle?" Ginny spoke out the title while Hermione gripped the paper tightly, scanning the page. There was a giant picture on the front page of Hermione hugging Harry in the champions tent and the more she read, the paler her face got. She was completely blind-sided by the article, she had definitely not expected something like this.

"Charged embrace?" Hermione cried out as she read the article. "That woman is bloody mad."

"Let me see." Ginny frowned as she grabbed the paper from Hermione and started to read the article out loud. "Hermione Granger and Harry Potter were caught in a charged embrace inside the champion's tent moments before the first task . . . yadda yadda yadda . . ." Ginny skipped over some parts as she went further down to the end. "As everyone already knows Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley dated . . ."

"Briefly." Hermione and Ron both said at the same time with a scoff, making Ginny smirk as she looked at the two before she went back to the article.

"The reason for the split has remained a mystery, but it is obvious now that the golden girl only has eyes for the boy who lived. One can only wonder how Mr. Weasley feels about the pair. Is there bad blood between the golden trio? Were Harry and Hermione sneaking around behind his back? Does young love justify such a betrayal?" Ginny's eyebrows rose high up her forehead as she glanced up at the frowning trio. "Well . . . that was-"

"Complete and utter rubbish." Harry glared at the paper as if he could set it on fire with his gaze.

"I have half a mind to sue that horrible woman." Ron crossed his arms. "She should be fired for def . . defa . . ." Ron looked to Hermione for the right word, but the brunette was stuck in her own world.

"Defamation of character?" Ginny raised an eyebrow.

Ron vigorously nodded his head. "Yeah! Why did she have to bloody drag me into this?"

"I thought you liked the attention." Ginny teased her brother who immediately turned beat red.

"Not this type . . ." Ron grumbled.

"You okay 'Mione?" Harry looked over at the brunette who was too quiet for his liking.

Hermione just sat there looking down at her food with a frown. First, she had woken up in Fleur Delacour's bed in just her underwear with no recollection of how she got there. Then she had been plagued with random flashbacks, or what she could assume were flashbacks, the entire night leaving her more confused, and now this. It was all too much. ' _Can't I just be left alone? I never asked for any of this.'_

"Mione?" Ginny gently nudged the young prodigy, shaking her from her thoughts. "You okay?"

"What do you think?" Hermione snapped, glaring at Ginny as she stood up abruptly.

"Hey, it's going to be okay. This will blow over." Harry tried to console the clearly upset brunette.

"I just want to be left alone." Hermione clenched her fists. "I guess that's too much to ask of people."

"Hey Harry!" Seamus came up to Harry, nudging his shoulder. "I read the article. I can't believe you snagged Hermione." The Irish student sent Hermione a wink and a smile, making her roll her eyes, before he turned his attention back to Harry. "Good on you mate."

"Oh, piss off." Hermione threw the paper at Seamus and stormed off.

/

Fleur was displeased to say the least; she had kept an eye out for Hermione all Saturday and even went as far as looking in the library and the nearby lake, but she was nowhere to be found. She didn't know why she felt this urgency to check up on the brunette or why said girl seemed to be in hiding.

The next morning made things even worse. When she sat down at the Ravenclaw table she was greeted by the sight of a very smug looking Veronique.

" _ **What has you in such a cheerful mood?"**_ Fleur suspiciously eyed the raven-haired girl looking at her with a gleam in those deep green orbs.

" _ **Nothing."**_ Veronique smiled as she grabbed The Daily Prophet and opened it up, pretending to read an article while Fleur was faced with the front page.

It took a minute for Fleur to register what she was seeing, but after a moment she came to her senses and realized it was Harry and Hermione on the front page. Without a second thought she snatched the paper from Veronique's hands, her bright eyes scanning from left to right, her grip on the paper growing tighter and tighter the more she read.

Once she was done she turned her gaze back to the image of Hermione throwing herself into Harry's arms, unable to look away for some strange reason. She felt rage boiling beneath the surface of her skin and it took every ounce of restraint she had in her system to not rip up the paper and burn the pieces as if that would erase the clearly embellished story. She didn't know what she was angrier about; the blatant lies told about Hermione that would surely give the golden girl even more attention that she already despised or seeing the two embrace over and over again, portraying the two as a couple, further fueling the betrayal she already felt.

" _ **Perhaps I was wrong about Hermione Granger."**_ Veronique smirked at Fleur's obvious irritation. " _ **Maybe she isn't a virgin. She sure seems to get around."**_

" _ **Shut up."**_ Fleur snapped at the devilish girl, her eyes turning dangerously cold.

" _ **Did I hit a nerve?"**_ Veronique laughed.

Fleur clenched her hand into a tight fist beneath the table, desperately trying not to show how much Veronique was getting to her. She had no idea why her comments were bothering her anyways. It wasn't like she and Hermione were together or she had feelings for the girl. Right?

" _ **She's right. Shut up Veronique."**_ Odette spoke up, placing a calming hand on Fleur's forearm; she could feel her alpha's anger radiating off of her and knew she was about to lose her temper. " _ **Everyone with half a brain knows that Rita Skeeter woman is a liar and a horrible journalist. Only an idiot would believe that article."**_

" _ **Are you calling me stupid?"**_ Veronique bristled at the now smirking red head.

Odette just shrugged. " _ **I wasn't, but if the shoe fits . . ."**_

" _ **Oh, that's rich coming from you. You're the dumb-"**_

" _ **I dare you to finish that sentence."**_ Came Gabrielle's voice as she rested her hands on the table, leaning towards the raven-haired girl in an intimidating manor.

" _ **What are you going to do about it if I do?"**_ Veronique raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms while a predatory smile spread across Gabrielle's face.

" _ **There's only one way to find out."**_

" _ **That's enough."**_ Fleur stopped the dispute before it could go too far, sending Veronique and Gabrielle a warning look.

" _ **You guys need to lighten up."**_ Veronique scoffed. " _ **I was just joking."**_

" _ **Clearly."**_ Odette replied with a roll of her eyes.

" _ **Gabrielle."**_ Fleur tried to break the glare her sister was still giving Veronique. " _ **Are you going to sit down and have breakfast or continue to cause problems?"**_

Gabrielle turned her glare to Fleur, looking her sister up and down distastefully. She couldn't believe her sister was saying she was the one causing problems when it was clearly Veronique inciting the mayhem as she always did. " _ **I've lost my appetite."**_ Gabrielle said coolly as she straightened herself out, giving Veronique and Fleur one last hard look before walking away.

Fleur let out a sigh as she watched her younger sibling leave; she realized now how harsh she sounded and that would help her situation with Gabrielle in no way, but a nudge in the ribs from Odette and the abrupt silence caught Fleur's attention and she looked up to see the girl that had been plaguing her thoughts walk in.

She tried to ignore the fluttering in her chest and the veela jumping around excitedly in her, hoping to catch the bookworm's eye, but Hermione didn't so much as glance in her direction. As disappointment washed over her she had to fight to keep her face neutral. _'Oh well, doesn't matter.'_ Fleur shrugged as she went back to her food, trying to appear uncaring when she felt the sharp sting of rejection even though Hermione hadn't said or done anything. Perhaps that was what was bothering her so much. She had expected a loud confrontation, a glare, an eye roll, something, anything, but she received nothing. It was as if the night never even happened.

The sound of Hermione's voice raising caught her attention again and she briefly glanced up to see the young Gryffindor throw the paper at one of the other students. 'S _he must 'ate zis. Zat article ees probably bozering 'er more zan anyone else.'_ She watched as Hermione just about stormed out of the hall and felt a strange compulsion to go after her. ' _Not my problem.'_ She tried to reason with herself as she tapped her fingers on the table for a moment, but before she realized what she was doing she was getting up to chase after the golden girl, earning her a questioning look from both her friends, which she ignored.

She briskly walked out of the great hall, looking left and right and as luck would have it her ears picked up the sound of Hermione stomping up the steps to the Gryffindor tower. Fleur picked up her pace and headed up the stairs after the fuming prodigy, hoping to catch her before she got too far, but Hermione was deceptively fast.

Fleur came to a halt when the portrait of the fat lady was slammed closed behind Hermione and the woman mumbled something about rude students. "Excusez-moi . . ." Fleur cleared her throat to get the fat lady's attention.

"Yes?" The fat lady eyed Fleur curiously.

"I would like to enter s'il vous plait."

"You're not a Gryffindor, let alone a Hogwarts student." The fat lady turned up her nose, making Fleur let out a huff of irritation.

"Ze password ees Caput draconis." Fleur continued on with an icy glare. "Now let me een."

"So rude." The woman glared right back at the French student, but obliged none the less and swung open.

Fleur just held her head up high as she strolled into the dormitory, but once in there she was completely lost. She slowly made her way up the stairs where Hermione disappeared when she accompanied her there before, but she had no idea where Hermione's room was. There were so many doors and she really didn't want to poke her head into random rooms to find the right one. ' _What an incredibly stupid idea.'_ Fleur shook her head, inwardly reprimanding herself for following Hermione. She turned and was about to leave when she heard loud music coming from one of the rooms nearby.

I'm about  
To have a nervous breakdown  
My head really hurts  
If I don't find a way out of here

I'm gonna go berserk 'cause  
I'm crazy and I'm hurt  
Head on my shoulders  
It's going berserk

She raised an eyebrow, curiosity getting the best of her as she quietly approached the door. She carefully opened it, peaking her head in to see . . . ' _She ees dancing?'_

I hear the same old talk talk talk  
The same old lines  
Don't do me that today,  
yeah If you know what's good for you  
You'll get out of my way

'Cause I'm crazy and I'm hurt  
Head on my shoulders  
Going berserk

Hermione Granger was indeed dancing and jumping around to the loud punk music blaring in the room, her brown and gold locks whipping around as her head moved from left to right. Fleur was surprised to say the least to see such a sight. She supposed it was a great way for Hermione to vent her very obvious frustrations, but she never expected the brightest witch of her age to unwind this way. She had imagined the English girl would listen to classical music to relax and get her mind off of things, not thrash around listening to punk.

For acting outta line  
You see the way I am  
You leave any time you can cause  
I'm crazy and I'm hurt

Head on my shoulders  
Going berserk

A small smile formed on Fleur's face as she continued to watch something she was sure no one ever really got the chance to see. She would never admit this to anyone, even herself, but she found the sight completely endearing. Every time she thought she had Hermione pegged a certain way, she completely surprised her.

Crazy! Crazy! Crazy! Crazy!  
I don't care what you fuckin' do

I don't care what you fuckin' say  
I'm so sick of everything  
I just want to die!

When the song came to an end and a new one started to play Fleur found herself stuck halfway in the doorway, wondering if she should enter and let her presence be known or let the girl be. She wanted so badly to say something, to comfort her in some way even though that went completely against her nature, but a firm hand gripping her shoulder made the decision for her and she was pulled away only to come face to face with Ginerva Weasley.

"What do you think you're doing?" Ginny glared at the blonde.

"Nozing." Fleur shrugged, putting on her cold, aloof face. "I was just going to check on 'Ermione."

"You need to stay away from her." Ginny growled, clenching her hand into a tight fist.

Fleur looked at her nails in a bored manner. "I do not zink zat ees your decision to make."

"I know what you did to her."

"Excusez-moi?" Fleur raised an eyebrow at the fuming red-head. "What did I do?"

"Oh, don't play dumb Delacour." Ginny scoffed. "I know you took advantage of Hermione or at least tried to."

Fleur's artic eyes turned colder than usual as she bristled at the bold accusation. "You 'ave no idea what you are talking about."

"I know exactly what I'm talking about." Ginny poked the blonde in the chest and Fleur had to hold back an irritated growl.

"I did no such zing." Fleur crossed her arms, desperately trying to stop herself from attacking the red-head who always seemed to get in her way. "I am not some cretin zat would 'arm someone who ees clearly drunk."

"Right." Ginny narrowed her eyes. "You better not have gotten her bloody pregnant."

"Pregnant?" Fleur's aloof demeanor slipped for all of a second at the chaser's statement, but she quickly recovered. "Une, nozing 'appened. Deux, your accusations are absurd at best, and trois, zat ees an incredibly 'ard and complicated spell to do Mademoiselle Weasley."

"So you know the spell!" Ginny cried out, pointing an accusing finger at the French student.

"Merde." Fleurs sighed, she was clearly not going to convince Ginny that she had done nothing to her friend so she simply brushed past the riled up chaser. "Eet was nice chatting wiz you as usual Mademoiselle Weasley."

"Don't walk away from me!" Ginny yelled as Fleur waved good-bye over her shoulder while she descended down the spiral steps. "Wanker." Ginny mumbled under her breath.

Fleur's neutral face slipped into a frown as she exited the Gryffindor common room; Ginevra Weasley had just confirmed her concerns. Hermione Granger really didn't remember anything from that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did anyone else see that going the way that it did? haha I'm still laughing at the thought of Hermione sneaking out of Fleur's room and poor Fleur having to encounter a pissed Ginny XD


	12. What a waste of a lovely night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand here's another one :D The song that somewhat helped inspire this chapter was What A Waste of A Lovely Night from La La Land. That movie is amazing :3

Fleur awoke to the usual gloom that loomed around Hogwarts, perfectly matching her mood. She briefly played with the idea of skipping classes that day in favor of trying to figure out the golden egg she had been prized. She had the misfortune of opening it when she was still hungover and the loud screeching that emitted from the object left her with PTSD. She had yet to try to take another crack at the thing and for now it just sat on her dresser, mocking her.

She had decided on going to classes though, the need to be the best at absolutely everything outweighing her desire for solitude. So there she sat in potions, hunched over her journal, drawing while she discreetly glanced every now and then to see when Hermione would arrive. Would she still give her the cold shoulder? Or had her memory returned to her?

The sound of loud chatter a couple rows in front of her pulled the veela's attention in that direction and she had to stop herself from rolling her eyes when she saw everyone fawning over Viktor. The entire population of the school kept approaching him asking him how he was feeling. He had just been released from the infirmary and everyone was keen to suck up to him and offer any help that they could. '' _e ees a quidditch player. I am sure 'e 'as suffered worse injuries.'_ Fleur inwardly grumbled to herself as she tried to focus back on her drawing, but the sound of Hermione's voice mingling with Harry made her ears perk.

She looked up to see Hermione striding in with a smile, seeming completely unfazed; a stark contrast to how she was the day before with the release of the article. Once again Fleur hoped to catch the bookworms eye, but Hermione breezed past her without so much as a glance in her direction. ' _Of course.'_ Fleur inwardly groaned as she slouched in her seat. ' _She can't really zink zat I took advantage of her could she?'_

Fleur was broken from her musings when she watched as Hermione and Harry approached Viktor. She immediately bristled at the sight of Hermione placing a hand on his forearm, probably offering her sympathies. ' _So I 'ave to get put in ze infirmary for my own stupidity for 'er to actually pay attention to me?'_ Fleur all but growled as she saw Viktor smile his most charming smile at Hermione, assuring her that he was fine while Harry clapped him on the back before they went to their seats.

' _Why does she bozer wiz zat brute?'_ Fleur kept looking from Hermione to Viktor with sharp blue eyes. She felt that horrible bubbling in her stomach again building the more she thought about it. If things kept going the way they were she was sure she was going to snap and it wasn't going to be pretty. She started to pack up her things, unable to stay any longer in the brunette's presence, earning her a questioning look from Odette who could feel her irritation from across the room.

Fleur just ignored the red-head and was about to sling her bag over her shoulder when the door swung open and Snape strode in with his head held high. "Turn to page 305."

' _Just my luck.'_ Fleur inwardly groaned as she dropped her bag back down, unpacking it once more. There was no way she would be able to sneak out with Snape's ever watchful eye on the entire class.

/

Later that day Fleur found herself sitting outside on one of the benches on the Hogwarts grounds, basking in the newfound sunlight with Odette and Gabrielle off to the side; Veronique was elsewhere, probably indulging in pixie dust in some bathroom, as usual.

She threw on her sunglasses as she leaned back on a wall, her lips in a tight line and her arms crossed to give the clear image that she was to be left alone. She was in no mood to talk to anyone, not even her friends. She was trying to work out why she was so bothered by everything; why Hermione's silence was slowly eating away at her. ' _Why do I care anyways? Eet ees not my fault eef she ees stupid enough to believe somezing so absurd. I am starting to wonder eef she really ees ze brightest witch of 'er age.'_

Fleur was once more brought out of her thoughts when she heard loud laughter nearby. She tried to ignore it, shooting a glare in the direction of some loud Slytherins behind her dark glasses. The blonde boy that resembled a weasel was in the center, distributing something, but she couldn't be bothered to look further into it.

The commotion increased tenfold when Hermione, Harry, and Ron walked by and Malfoy called out. "Hey, last place!" His loud statement caught everyone's attention including Fleur's.

Harry sighed as the group paused in their steps, eyeing Draco with barely veiled disdain. "What is it Malfoy?"

"You see the pins we made for you?" Draco smirked, pointing to the badge on his lapel.

Fleur had to squint to see what the green pin said, but she didn't have to look too hard before one of the Slytherins yelled out. "Potter stinks!" Fleur and company rolled their eyes at the childish antics of the immature students.

"Real clever Malfoy." Hermione scoffed, stepping in for her friend. "Did you come up with that all by yourself? Or did Goyle have to help you?" She smirked when she saw the deep scowl form on Draco's face.

"Oh, no. I came up with it myself." His scowl transformed back into a smirk. "Don't worry, we got one for you too Granger."

"I'm honored." Hermione replied dryly, making Fleur's mouth twitch almost into a smile at the brunette's bold defiance.

"Would you like to see?" Draco's smirk grew wider as he flicked the badge and it twisted and turned until Hermione's face showed up with a wink.

"Granger sucks!" Another Slytherin called out and the group burst out into a fit of laughter as a small amount of them brought their hand to their mouths in the shape of a fist and pushed their tongue into their cheek to resemble a blow job.

"Oi! You better knock that shit off!" Ron growled as he stepped forward.

Fleur felt her temper make an incredible comeback as she watched the group continue to provoke the brunette, making implications she really didn't like for reasons she didn't care to think about. ' _Zat dirty little rat!'_ Before Fleur realized it she had thrown off her sunglasses, stood up, and was storming towards the Slytherins with Odette and Gabrielle hot on her tail, both feeling the rage emanating from their alpha.

"Come on Ron." Hermione grabbed the red head's arm to hold him back as she shot Draco a pointed glare. "He's not worth it.'

"What's wrong Weasley?" Draco laughed. "Upset Granger didn't blow you too?"

Fleur continued on her war path, the fire in her growing by the second. She pushed through the crowd, stopping in front of Harry for a second. "May I borrow zis?" She asked as she grabbed his thick text book from his hand without waiting for an answer.

She strode forward a few steps until she was right in front of Draco and before he knew what was happening Fleur lifted the text book with both hands and brought it down full force across his face, sending him tumbling to the ground with a yelp.

"What the bloody hell Delacour!?" Draco yelled out as he glared up the blonde. The left side of his face was bright red and there was blood leaking out of his nose .

Draco went to scramble to his feet but Fleur was quick to drop the book and pull out her wand, pointing it as his face as she stood over him with a dangerous look in her arctic eyes.

Crabbe and Goyle went to reach for their wands only to be met with wands pressed into their neck held by Gabrielle and Odette. The two veela glared at the boys, daring them to make a move on their alpha, but both slowly put their hands up, shifting their eyes nervously to their leader that was on the ground.

"Eef you or anyone makes a move for zeir wand I will turn you into ze pig zat you are and I promise eet will not be reversable Monsieur Malfoy." Fleur's cold voice sent shivers down the now quiet crowds spines.

"What's your bloody problem?" Draco growled up at Fleur.

Fleur just ignored the question and stood her ground. "Eef I see a single pin I will find you and I will 'ex you. Eef I so much as 'ear about zis 'orrible pin again I will 'ex you. You 'ave until ze end of ze day to collect all zese distasteful zings. Do you understand?"

"I can't-"

"Do. You. Understand?" Fleur emphasized each word as she pushed her wand into his neck.

"Y-yes." Malfoy nodded his head as he eyed the wand pressing into his skin.

"Bon." Fleur smiled as she retracted the wand and slid it back into place in her holster. "Zat was easy enough non?"

"You have no idea who you're messing with Delacour." Malfoy grumbled as was helped up by his goons. "You just wait until my father hears about this."

"Oh, I look forward to 'earing from 'im." Fleur kept her cold smile in place, making Draco shift uncomfortably under her smoldering gaze. "'E will be more zan welcome to come to my clan and explain why 'is son zought 'e could zreaten ze 'eir to ze Delacour clan. I am not so sure zat ze rest of ze clan will receive 'im as well as I will zough so I would tread very carefully Monsieur Malfoy."

Malfoy's face paled and for once he kept his mouth shut as Fleur leaned down, grabbed Harry's book, and carefully swept off the blood and dirt that had accumulated on the cover before calmly walking up to Harry and handing it back to the stunned boy. "Merci." Fleur spoke simply with a small smile, not even looking in Hermione's direction before she made her exit with a very confused Odette and Gabrielle following.

"That was bloody brilliant . . ." Harry said with wide eyes, still in shock at what just happened.

"I think I'm in love." Ron sighed as he looked at the retreating blonde then back to Malfoy quickly getting his pins back with a scowl firmly on his face.

' _Brilliant is an understatement . . .'_ Hermione thought to herself as she focused on Fleur's back before she disappeared around a corner. She watched the entire encounter with wide eyes and a pounding heart. ' _Why would she come to our defense though . . .?'_

_/_

" _ **What the hell was that!?"**_ Gabrielle finally spoke when the trio was a safe distance away and heading back to the carriage. " _ **You can't just go around hitting people and using the clan as a defense!"**_

" _ **He deserved it."**_ Fleur shrugged nonchalantly.

" _ **You are beyond irresponsible."**_ Gabrielle growled, glaring daggers at her older sister.

" _ **Are you going to rat me out to mom or grandma?"**_ Fleur glared right back, stopping in her steps, and crossing her arms.

" _ **I'm no rat."**_ Gabrielle seethed.

Fleur scoffed. " _ **Could have fooled me."**_

" _ **Come on you two . . ."**_ Odette frowned, stepping between the feuding siblings. " _ **Gabrielle stood up for you back there Fleur. Please don't be upset with her."**_

Fleur eyed her little sister still glaring at her for a moment, letting her anger that was still thrashing around in her slowly start to settle so she could become a little more rational. Gabrielle did indeed come to her defense when Malfoy's followers went for their wands and that definitely said something; perhaps Gabrielle didn't hate her as much as she thought she did. " _ **You're right."**_ Fleur spoke simply, surprising both the veela standing in front of her.

" _ **I am?"**_ Odette replied with wide eyes, unable to comprehend her alpha agreeing with her.

" _ **Yes."**_ Fleur replied with a small smile at her friends surprise before she turned her attention back to her just as shocked little sister. " _ **Thank you for your support. You did well."**_

Gabrielle seemed lost for a moment, unsure of how to respond to her sister's praise. It had been a long time since Fleur and her spoke civilly to each other and even longer since Fleur looked at her without clear disinterest. She was secretly thrilled that her older sister was pleased with her, but there was no way she was going to give Fleur the satisfaction of knowing she cared. This was just a very tiny step in the right direction and she wasn't about to forgive Fleur just yet.

" _ **As if I need your approval."**_ Gabrielle finally spoke, putting her nose in the air before she stomped off to the carriage, mumbling about how irresponsible Fleur is.

Fleur watched as her sister stomped off, a small smile still pulling at her lips. Gabrielle was just as, if not more, stubborn than she was and she hated to admit she admired that. She felt the confusing feelings coming off of Gabrielle when she praised her and she felt the small spark of joy that was hidden under the confusion. Perhaps everything was not lost.

" _ **Fleur . . ."**_ Odette spoke carefully, causing icy blues to flicker back to her. " _ **What is going on?"**_

" _ **What do you mean?"**_ Fleur furrowed her brow, confused.

" _ **It's just . . . you've been acting strangely. I've noticed that its always when . . ."**_ Odette gulped, scared she was going to push things too far, but she was worried about her alpha. " _ **That Granger girl is around."**_

" _ **I have no idea what you're talking about."**_ Fleur scoffed as she crossed her arms and looked out to the forbidden forest, her eyes softening when she remembered Hermione steering her through the dark forest, laughing and smiling at her.

" _ **You like her."**_ Odette spoke boldly, making Fleur stiffen.

" _ **Don't be absurd."**_

" _ **It's okay if you like her Fleur."**_ Odette continued on, taking hesitant steps toward the bristling blonde. " _ **I rather like her too."**_ Fleur shot the red-head a dangerous look at the mention of her shared interest. " _ **Not like that."**_ Odette held up her hands defensively, making Fleurs gaze become less threatening. " _ **I just mean she's rather . . . likable."**_ Odette smiled at her own inability to come up with a better word.

" _ **Why would I possibly like her?"**_ Fleur huffed. " _ **She's an insufferable know it all that is difficult at best. I'm only doing this for the bet."**_

" _ **Fleur, it's obvious-"**_

" _ **I don't want to talk about this anymore."**_ Fleur glared at Odette. " _ **I don't want to hear her name again. Do you understand?"**_

Odette just let out a sigh, looking at her alpha who is clearly suffering from a deep case of denial. ' _And she says 'Ermione ees difficult.'_ _ **"Yes, I understand."**_

" _ **Good."**_ Fleur nodded her head, glancing once more at the forest before she made her way to the carriage with Odette trailing close behind.

' _I 'ave to figure out a way to get zem to come to zeir senses . . .'_ Odette thought to herself, racking her brain as to what she could do to make both girls stop denying thier obvious feelings.

/

The next day Odette sat in her seat shifting her eyes from Fleur to Hermione who both snuck each other glances without the other knowing it. She wanted to yell at both girls that they were being ridiculous, but she knew that would never work so she spent the entire night before and early this morning coming up with a plan she was sure would work.

She waited for classes to be over and hoped beyond all hope that she might find Hermione alone in the library. She almost jumped for joy when she saw the brunette sitting alone at a table, her head buried in a book. ' _Perfect!'_ Odette just about beamed as she strode up to the distracted girl. "Excusez-moi . . ." Odette cleared her throat, earning her Hermione's undivided attention.

"Oh, hey there Odette." Hermione smiled up at the red-head. "Long time no see."

"Oui, it 'as been a while." Odette smiled back.

"You here to get some homework done too?"

"Actually, I came 'ere to ask somezing of you." Odette chewed on her lower lip nervously. ' _Please let zis work, please let zis work, please let zis work.'_

"What can I do for you?" Hermione placed her quill down. "Do you need help with your potions essay?"

"Non." Odette shook her head. "I am actually 'aving a difficult time wiz astronomy. We did not 'ave zat course at Beuxbatons so I am quite lost."

"Ah, I see."

"I was wondering eef you would meet wiz me later tonight to 'elp wiz my essay for eet. I 'ave to locate constellations and such and write a report on my findings, but I 'ave no idea what I am even looking for." Odette looked down, kicking her feet with a blush on her face.

Hermione thought it over for a moment, unsure as to if she should do it, but Odette had been nothing but nice and sincere since she met her. "Well-"

"If you are too busy I completely understand 'Ermione." Odette quickly interrupted the brunette before she could answer. "I would not want to inconvenience you."

"I would love to help Odette." Hermione smiled at the clearly nervous veela. "It's no trouble at all. What time do you need me there?"

"Ees eight o'clock acceptable? I would not want you to get in trouble because of curfew."

"Eight is perfect." Hermione nodded her head. "I'll be there."

"Merci 'Ermione!" Odette was positively beaming as she ran up to the bookworm and hugged her, making Hermione laugh at her gratitude.

"You're welcome." Hermione hugged her back and with one last big smile Odette waved farewell to Hermione and all but skipped to the dining hall. ' _I've done my part. Now zey must do zeirs.'_

_/_

Eight o'clock rolled around and Hermione found herself ascending the steps to the astronomy tower, nose in her book, brushing up on the subject in her usual attire of her plaid skirt, a short sleeved white button-down shirt, and tie; everything except her robe.

She briefly glanced up as she reached the final step and opened the door to see a figure in the blue Beuxbatons uniform leaning forward, looking into the telescope. "Hey, I've read up on the subject and I think I know-" The figure stood up, looking at her questioningly, and Hermione all but jumped when she realized it was Fleur. "What in the bloody hell are you doing here?"

"I'm waiting for someone." Fleur huffed, eyeing the young Gryffindor carefully. "What are you doing 'ere Mademoiselle Granger?"

"I'm here to help Odette with her Astronomy paper." Hermione glared at the blonde who was now mumbling in French.

"I'm going to kill zat girl." Fleur growled.

Hermione furrowed her brow in confusion. "Did she . . .?"

"Oui." Fleur confirmed her suspicions of the betrayal. "She set us up. I don't know what goes zrough zat girls 'ead sometimes. I assure you I had nozing to do wiz zis."

"Right. As if I'm supposed to believe that." Hermione grumbled and turned to leave, but when she pulled on the door she was met with resistance; it was locked. "Odette!" Hermione cried out, pulling more.

"It would seem we are trapped." Fleur sighed as she leaned against the wall.

"Why are you doing this?" Hermione turned sharply on her heal, going in on the foreign witch. "Don't you think you've done enough?"

"Moi?" Fleur laughed mirthlessly. "I 'ave no idea what you are talking about."

"You know damn well what I mean. The other day I woke up and . . ." Hermione's cheeks started to heat up at the memory.

"You mean ze ozer day when you left wizout saying a zing to me and then proceeded to treat me like a leper." Fleur grumbled. "You know, zis 'ot and cold routine ees getting old."

"Hot and cold routine? What in the world are you talking about?" Hermione huffed.

"You really don't remember a zing from ze ozer night do you?" Fleur raised an eyebrow.

"I . . . well . . .no." Hermione blushed as she rubbed the back of her head.

"Well allow me to enlighten you Mademoiselle Granger." Fleur narrowed her eyes as she approached Hermione. "You insisted we go to zat 'orrible forest to go swimming and when I offered to take you back to ze castle you demanded I let you sleep in my room. I obliged and you disappeared."

"D-did we?" Hermione moved her finger back from Fleur to her, trying to grasp what happened.

"Trust me, if we did what you zink we did, you would remember Mademoiselle Granger." Fleur's statement sent shivers down the brunette's spine, but she quickly shook it off. _'Cocky git.'_ Hermione thought with a light blush.

"Besides, I am not some cretin zat would take advantage of someone who ees clearly drunk. Een fact . . ." Fleur smirked when she saw Hermione's face pale. "You tried to kiss moi."

"N-no." Hermione was mortified.

"C'est vrai." Fleur shrugged. "Try to remember instead of blaming me."

Hermione furrowed her brows, looking out at the stars, and then out to the forest. It was as if a veil had been lifted and the whole night came crashing back down on her. She remembered pulling a reluctant Fleur through the forest, basically stripping in front of the veela, and showing her her secret get away. She remembered how her heart hummed with delight when she frazzled the normally stoic champion, how the proximity of the girl filled her with ease, and how close she came to kissing said girl. "Oh, bloody hell . . ." Hermione sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose, trying to hide her blush. "I did."

"I see your memory ees coming back to you." Fleur spoke in a neutral tone even though she was secretly thrilled with her small victory. "I believe I am owed an apology from you and zat insufferable Weasley girl."

"Ginny!?" Hermione whirled around, her eyes wide. "What did she say?"

"Zat I better not 'ave gotten you pregnant." Fleur had to hold back her laugh at how pale Hermione had become.

"I'm going to kill her." Hermione growled while Fleur just placed her hands on the cold stone of the open window, looking out at the night sky. "I suppose . . ." Hermione sighed as she pushed down her pride, pausing for a moment when she took in the sight of the moonlight washing over Fleur, but she quickly collected herself. "I suppose I do owe you an apology. I should have said something to you."

Fleur just hummed her agreement as she relished in the cool breeze hitting her skin. "Zat would be a start."

"Well, you haven't exactly been innocent when it comes to me." Hermione grumbled as she crossed her arms.

Fleur just rolled her eyes as she continued looking out at the stars, ignoring the bristling brunette's statement. She supposed that would be the closest thing she could get to an apology from the stubborn girl and if she was honest with herself she found the way Hermione would tense up and bristle when admitting any type of fault completely endearing. Her gaze fell onto the forbidden forest and she briefly glanced at Hermione before looking back out to the dark woods illuminated by the moonlight. She supposed she should be thanking Odette for such a perfect opportunity, seeing as her one good opportunity had slipped through her fingers nights before.

Hermione eyed the girl carefully who, for once, did not respond in kind to her bold statement. She let out a sigh, trying to release the perhaps misguided anger she felt towards the young champion and looked out at the stars herself, leaning on the open archway.

"Eet ees quite beautiful up 'ere."

Hermione briefly glanced back over at Fleur who seemed to be lost in her own thoughts before looking back out into the quiet night. "I suppose there could be worse places to be trapped."

"What a shame . . ." Fleur sighed as she leaned on one elbow, resting her chin on her hand.

Hermione raised an eyebrow, turning her full attention back to Fleur. "What is?"

"Zat such a beautiful, romantic view ees wasted on you and me." Fleur glanced over to see Hermione's gaze hardened. "I'm sure zere are ozers zat would love zis swirling sky, but unfortunately zere ees only you and I."

"A travesty, I'm sure." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"What a waste of a lovely night." Fleur spoke more to herself as she pushed off from the wall and went to tinker with the telescope.

"You're not clever you know." Hermione narrowed her eyes as she carefully watched Fleur. "I know what you're trying to do, what you've been trying to do, and you're not going to make me fall for your antics."

"I 'ave no idea what you are talking about Mademoiselle Granger." Fleur spoke as she looked into the telescope dismissively. "You're not even my type."

"Really?" Hermione scoffed, her eyebrows raising. ' _The bloody nerve of this girl.'_

"Oui." Fleur stood up and had to refrain from smiling when she saw the irritation written all over Hermione's face, it would seem she was finally getting to the golden girl. "We would never work out and zere clearly eesn't a spark een sight."

"I think I'll be the one to make that call." Hermione spoke without really thinking.

"Oh?" Fleur raised an amused eyebrow.

"Yes." Hermione stuck to her guns, sticking her nose up in the air.

"So, you zink zere ees somezing 'ere?" Fleur's lips tugged up into a smile.

"What!? No!" Hermione stomped up to Fleur, her irritation clearly getting the best of her as she pointed her finger accusingly at the blonde. "Although, I know you think you look so cute in your satin dress-"

"It's silk." Fleur replied with a smirk.

"You're right." Hermione continued, ignoring the cocky champion's comment. "I'd never fall for you at all. Maybe this whole scenario. . ." Hermione waved her hands around, pointing to the romantic view. "Would appeal to some other boy or girl you're trying to woo who thinks there's some chance of 'romance.' Hermione used air quotes around the last word, making it increasingly difficult for Fleur to keep a straight face. "But, I'm frankly feeling nothing." Hermione crossed her arms, looking off to the side.

"Is that so?" Fleur raised an eyebrow at Hermione's red cheeks that completely betrayed her statement.

"Or it could be less than nothing." Hermione shot back.

"Good to know." Fleur replied, a smile tugging at her lips once more. "So you agree?"

"Yes. It's a complete waste of a lovely night."

"You know . . ." Fleur walked closer to Hermione, making the bookworm stiffen, her heart starting to rebel against her and pound in her chest at their proximity. "I'm sure a simple aloha mora spell would 'ave unlocked zat door."

Hermione's eyes widened and her cheeks grew redder at Fleur's statement. ' _Bloody Hell . . .'_

"But I am sure you already knew zis seeing as you are ze brightest witch of your age." Fleur's smile widened at the mortification and irritation clearly written on Hermione's face.

"Sod off." Hermione growled as she stepped away from the clearly amused veela. "You just love riling me up!"

"I do." Fleur smirked as she nodded her head.

"You are without a doubt the MOST insufferable woman I have ever met, do you know that?" Hermione growled. "You think you can just walk around doing whatever you please, causing problems, trying to flirt with me."

"I believe you were ze one zat was trying to flirt wiz me last time Mademoiselle Granger, but please, continue." Fleur crossed her arms as she leaned her shoulder on a wall.

"You just . . . Ugh!" Hermione stomped her foot, heading for the door. "You just don't know when to quit!"

"I don't quit." Fleur shrugged, eyeing Hermione as she mumbled the aloha mora spell and sure enough the door unlocked. "'Ermione . . ." Fleur's voice softened when she saw the brunette open the door. "I was just-"

"Oh save it. You think you can get whatever you want. You think that you're so clever and that you can say whatever you want to try to confuse me and then play it off like you're joking!" Hermione yelled over her shoulder. "Well, it's not going to work." Hermione slammed the door behind her as she made her exit with Fleur following close behind.

The blonde had just reached the door and was about to open it when Hermione came bursting back in. "And one more thing-"

Before Hermione could further berate the veela Fleur acted on her instincts. She grabbed the Gryffindor by her tie that she fiddled with too often, pulled the shocked girl in, and pressed her lips against the ones that loved to scold her.

Prior to Fleur's rash decision she could feel her heart pounding in her chest, but now with Hermione's surprisingly soft lips pressed against her own, she felt her heart all but stop beating entirely. She gripped the tie tightly, her eyes closed as she relished in the feeling of electricity running through her veins and tingles shooting down her spine.

When she pulled away, Hermione's tie slowly slipped out of her hand, and she opened her eyes expecting Hermione to slap her or yell, but she was greeted with the sight of the brunette looking at her with wide amber eyes, rendered speechless.

To say Hermione was shocked would be an understatement. She had expected the veela to continue to dismiss her, not kiss her so . . . perfectly. She thought with the force of the pull that Fleur used to bring her in, her lips would crash against her own and bruise her, but her touch was surprisingly gentle and ' _So soft . . .'_ Hermione thought to herself when she closed her eyes and gave in to the kiss, but it seemed as soon as the kiss started it had ended, leaving Hermione to stand there, looking at the blonde as if she was looking at her for the first time.

"Je suis désolé." Fleur quickly tried to remedy the situation when Hermione looked at her strangely and was so quiet it unsettled her. "I shouldn't-"

Before Fleur could even finish her apology Hermione brought her hand to the back of Fleur's neck and pulled her back in for a searing kiss. Hermione didn't fully know why she was doing what she was doing, all she knew was she needed more and she needed it now.

It was Fleurs turn to be shocked when Hermione pressed her body against her own, bringing them as close as possible as she moved her lips against Fleur's own that were now finally starting to catch up with what was happening. She hesitated for a moment, but decided boldness is what was getting her somewhere so she placed her hands on Hermione's hips, squeezing lightly as she finally started to kiss the object of her affection back with equal intensity.

Hermione responded to Fleur's touch by pressing the blonde against the wall nearby, burying both her hands in those long gold locks she spent so long secretly admiring. Her body felt like it was on fire and Fleur's thumbs stroking her hips were only adding fuel to the flames and if Hermione was being honest with herself in that moment, she wanted to burn. She poured all of her confusion, all of her frustration, and all of the deep passion she felt for the blonde that was carefully locked away into the kiss and proceeded to bite down on Fleur's lower lip, tugging lightly on the flesh, earning her a quiet moan of appreciation which just spurred her into pressing the veela harder into the wall.

In a split-second Fleur turned and flipped their positions, pressing the fiery Gryffindor into the wall as she deepened the kiss, running her tongue along Hermione's lower lip. She had imagined this moment for a long time, but not even her wildest fantasies could compare to the reality of kissing Hermione Granger. Fleur had kissed many a person and done many things, but nothing had every made her feel like this; she was light-headed, euphoric, and it felt as if her body was positively buzzing from the excitement.

Hermione was having the exact same experience, enjoying the feeling so much that she deprived herself of oxygen when it was clearly needed. When she couldn't do it anymore she pulled away and Fleur chased her with her lips, getting one last lingering kiss in before they both slowly opened their eyes and rich gold met brightly glowing neon blue that could light up the darkest room. They looked at each other with wonder as they panted, desperately trying to regain their composure, but the task was impossible when they were both on the verge of frenzy.

"Yeah . . ." Fleur spoke between pants with a smirk. "Definitely nozing 'ere."

"Oh, shut up." Hermione growled as she pulled Fleur back into a deep kiss. She decided in that moment that this was definitely her favorite method of effectively shutting the cocky veela up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finalllyyyyy!!! You guys have no idea how long I had wanted to put up this chapter when I first wrote it, but I didn't want things to be pushed too fast to the point it was unrealistic. All the kudos has to go to Odette though, the clever veela :3 Oh! And how great was it to see Fleur beat Malfoy down with that book? haha this was definitely one of my favorite chapters. Anyways, I would adore to hear your guys' thoughts on the chapter :)


	13. Five Minutes

"It's getting late." Hermione bit her swollen lower lip after she pulled away from Fleur's hungry mouth. They had been snogging for the past thirty minutes in the astronomy tower; every time Hermione told herself she needed to go Fleur's lips were already on hers again, turning her brain to mush.

"Oui." Fleur agreed breathlessly, her eyes glowing even brighter than they had when they started. "Eet ees."

"So-"

Fleur cut Hermione off once more, pressing her full lips against Hermione's swollen ones in another searing kiss before she could try to depart. In the past thirty minutes she had developed an unhealthy addiction to kissing the fiery Gryffindor; the way Hermione grabbed her, the way she sighed softly when she kissed her gently, the way she tasted, everything was so intoxicating.

Hermione caved in almost immediately to Fleur's pink lips that demanded her attention. She could feel herself getting lost in the veela, but a small voice in her brain pulled her from her dream state, reminding her that it was almost curfew and the other prefects checked the astronomy tower frequently when they were patrolling.

The thought of being caught in such a compromising position was enough to make Hermione push the eager blonde away from her.

Fleur just gave Hermione a questioning look and Hermione had to stop herself from kissing the blonde again when she saw how adorable Fleur looked with her brow furrowed, her bright eyes glossed over, and her full lips pouting.

"Meaning, we should get out of here."

"Where are we going?" Fleur played dumb, making Hermione sigh and run a hand through her now messy brown locks.

The sight of Hermione disheveled hair, swollen lips, and lightly blushing cheeks made Fleur go in to kiss the Gryffindor again before she could try to argue, but a firm hand on her shoulder kept her at bay.

"Fleur." Hermione warned while the veela pouted. "Don't even try to start that again."

"Fine." Fleur sighed as she took a step back and Hermione headed towards the door. "I suppose I will see you around?" She raised an eyebrow at Hermione's retreating back.

Hermione paused in her steps, looking over her shoulder with a small smile. "I don't know. It's an awfully big castle and it's not like we have any classes together."

Fleur just rolled her eyes with a smile. "You know what I mean."

Hermione shrugged in response. "We'll see." And with that she swept out the door, leaving a grinning veela in her wake.

' _Even now she ees playing hard to get.'_ Fleur thought to herself as she looked out once more at the stars before she left to go back to her carriage. ' _Challenge accepted Mademoiselle Granger.'_

/

" _ **What are you smiling about?"**_ Veronique raised an eyebrow when Fleur entered the carriage, a grin still tugging at her lips.

Fleur paused in her steps, her face falling for a moment at the sight of Veronique scrutinizing her. A part of her wanted to brag and tell Veronique she had made progress with Hermione Granger and had spent the last half hour snogging her, but something in her made her bite her tongue and keep the information to herself. " _ **Nothing."**_

" _ **Bullshit."**_ Veronique replied automatically. " _ **Spill."**_ A devilish smile crossed the raven-haired girl's face, her green eyes lighting up.

" _ **I mean it."**_ Fleur shrugged and made sure her face was neutral when she thought back on how she had spent her night. " _ **Nothing is going on."**_

" _ **You're not as good of a liar as you think you are."**_ Veronique grinned.

" _ **And you're not as clever as you think you are."**_ Fleur replied with a smirk and flicked her friend's nose before heading towards her room.

" _ **Fine."**_ Veronique huffed. " _ **You can keep your secrets, but I'm on to you."**_

" _ **I'm sure you are."**_ Fleur rolled her eyes as she entered her room and promptly plopped onto her bed, looking up at her ceiling before her eyes flickered back to the golden egg sitting atop of her dresser. She felt confident, things were finally starting to go her way, so why shouldn't she take another crack at the egg?

She hopped up from her bed and headed towards the egg with her wand drawn. She cast a quick spell on it to try to quiet the sound that had come out before. It seemed like a simple solution, which should have been a dead give away to her that it wouldn't work, but sometimes overthinking was the worst thing you could do.

She popped open the egg once more, eager to see if the spell worked, but was greeted almost immediately with loud screeching, making her drop her prize.

"Merde!" She cried out and quickly closed it back up. ' _Per'aps I should not 'ave pressed my luck.'_

/

The next day Fleur found herself sitting in the great hall happily chewing on her breakfast when Odette came and hesitantly took a seat next to the blonde. The red-head's posture was stiff and it was obvious she was nervous. Odette had no idea how the night before went or if her alpha was mad at her; she knew she definitely crossed a line, but she felt it was necessary.

" _ **Good morning Odette."**_

Odette jumped when Fleur spoke and turned her attention to her. " _ **M-morning Fleur."**_ Odette stuttered nervously.

Fleur raised an eyebrow at Odette's behavior; she didn't have to be able to feel the red-head's emotions to know she was on edge. " _ **You can relax Odette. I'm not upset."**_ Fleur smirked.

" _ **So things went well?"**_ Odette shifted from nervous to positively beaming in the blink of an eye when she finally realized her alpha's happy demeanor.

Fleur just shrugged in response as she took a bite of her toast; she didn't know why she was keeping what happened so private. She was usually bragging to Odette and Veronique within minutes of hooking up with someone, but for some reason she wanted to keep it to herself.

" _ **Come on, tell me what happened last night."**_ Odette pouted.

" _ **Yes, do tell."**_ Veronique smirked as she sat down on Fleur's other side.

" _ **There's nothing to tell."**_ Fleur remained neutral even though she felt herself bristle on the inside at Veronique's persistence.

" _ **Odette?"**_ Veronique leaned forward to get a view of Odette who had stiffened. " _ **What are you pestering Fleur about?"**_

" _ **I was simply asking Fleur about the golden egg."**_ Odette covered quickly. Fleur may not have outwardly shown her nervousness, but she could feel it coming off of the blonde in subtle waves.

Veronique narrowed her eyes at the red-head now sipping on her juice, trying to act nonchalant. " _ **Something is going on. What am I missing?"**_

" _ **A conscience."**_ Gabrielle jumped in as she took her seat across from the trio. "A _**brain. Basic compassion."**_

" _ **Very funny."**_ Veronique glared over at the younger blonde while Fleur had to hide her smile behind her drink. " _ **Wait a minute!"**_ A lightbulb seemed to go off in Veronique head and she looked from Fleur to Odette then back to Fleur. " _ **Are you two fucking!?"**_

Fleur almost spat out her drink at Veronique's absurd question. " _ **You're joking right?"**_ Fleur looked absolutely mortified while Odette turned a bright shade of red as Gabrielle looked from Fleur back to Odette, a frown forming on her face.

" _ **Are you?"**_ Veronique raised an eyebrow.

" _ **Of course not."**_ Odette finally found her voice, avoiding Gabrielle's hard gaze. If Fleur wasn't so dumbfounded by the question she might have noticed her little sister's actions too, but it seemed luck was on the red-head's side today. " _ **Not everyone is trying to get in Fleur's pants Veronique."**_

" _ **Don't know why they wouldn't be."**_ Veronique threw a wink in Fleur's direction, making Fleur roll her eyes.

It was in that moment Fleur saw Hermione Granger walk in the room and her attention was immediately drawn to the brunette. For a brief moment Hermione's eye caught bright blue watching her carefully and if Fleur didn't have the sharp sight she did she would have missed how the corner of her mouth twitched into a half smile.

/

"You seem awfully chipper today." Ginny commented as she and Hermione took their place at the Gryffindor table.

"I'm always chipper in the morning Gin. You're the one who isn't a morning person." Hermione grinned over at the red-head already digging into her food.

"Oh yeah." Ginny smiled around a mouthful of biscuits.

"Mornin." Harry said grumpily as he took a seat at the table across from the girls.

Ginny raised an eyebrow at Harry's disheveled appearance; his hair was a bigger mess than it usually was. "Rough night?"

"You could say that." Ron grumbled as he sat down next to the messy haired boy. "Harry was up all night fiddling with that bloody egg. Kept the whole dorm up."

"Still can't figure it out?" Hermione frowned.

"I haven't the foggiest as to how to stop the screeching." Harry sighed as he loaded his plate.

"Fleur looks well rested." Ron spoke as he looked across to the blonde happily eating her toast. "Wonder if she figured it out already. Do you reckon she might give you a hint if she did 'Mione?"

Hermione just scoffed in response. "Wouldn't that defeat the purpose of the competition?"

"And why does Hermione have to be the one to talk to the her?" Ginny threw a glare over her shoulder at the blonde. "She obviously can't be trusted."

"Lay off." Hermione gave the red-head a warning glare.

"Oh, so we're all suddenly cool with Fleur?" Ginny shot back. "I thought that-"

"It was a misunderstanding." Hermione cut Ginny off before she could voice what she thought happened when her friend was inebriated. "I was completely wrong."

"Plus, she just about knocked Malfoy out." Ron grinned. "It was bloody brilliant."

"She punched Malfoy?" Ginny raised an eyebrow, looking at the blonde over her shoulder again.

"She hit him in the face with my potions book and threatened him within an inch of his life for those pins he tried to distribute." Harry jumped in.

Ginny let out a low whistle of appreciation. "That's a bloody big book and what pins are you guys talking about? I didn't see any."

"Exactly." Ron replied with a dopey grin, eyeing the veela across the room with a far off look in his eyes. "She told him if she saw a single pin she would hex him . . ." Ron sighed and the group rolled their eyes. "She's perfect."

Ginny looked over at Malfoy who was currently scowling more than the usual amount. "Well color me impressed and that whole thing-"

"Like I said, it was a misunderstanding." Hermione blushed when Ron and Harry looked at her funny. "I was completely in the wrong."

"'Mione is admitting she was wrong?" Ron's eyes widened as he observed the now scowling brunette. "What did I miss?"

"Nothing." Hermione quickly cut Ginny off before she could say anything and Harry just smirked when Hermione discreetly glanced over at the beaming veela.

/

The day passed and much to Fleur's chagrin she didn't have a single class with the bookworm so she was only able to see Hermione in passing, leaving her antsy for potions the next day.

She sat in the class, bouncing her leg under the table while Odette shot her an amused smile which she ignored between glances to the door. Her time spent in the astronomy tower with Hermione Granger was still fresh in her mind and if she closed her eyes she could still taste the Gryffindor on her lips, leaving her hungry for more.

When Hermione finally entered the class she threw the bookworm a smile which she returned in kind. Fleur noticed Harry wasn't with her and was beyond excited at the prospect of Hermione partnering up with her, but her hopes were dashed almost immediately when Hermione walked past her and took a seat next to Viktor. ' _You 'ave got to be kidding me.'_ Fleur inwardly grumbled as she watched the two converse a row in front of her.

Fleur tried to hide her irritation when Odette moved to sit next to her upon seeing she would be partnerless, leaving Veronique to fend for herself. " _ **Thought you might prefer me instead of some random person."**_ Odette whispered as Snape walked into the room, ordering everyone to open up their books.

Fleur just grunted her acceptance as she flipped open her book while she kept her eyes firmly on the pair in front of her. She had to hold back a growl when Viktor scooted closer to Hermione and shot the brunette a charming smile. ' _What a tool.'_ Fleur inwardly seethed as she pulled out a piece of paper. She quickly wrote down a message and muttered a spell under her breath so Snape wouldn't hear; she had definitely learned her lesson from trying to throw the paper to Hermione so she brushed up on a spell that would be more inconspicuous for passing notes.

Hermione was dutifully writing her notes, trying to ignore Viktor's proximity when something that definitely wasn't her writing slowly appeared on her parchment. She raised an eyebrow at first, but when Viktor gave her a questioning look she quickly covered the paper and gave him a smile which seemed to please him enough to make him go back to his own notes.

When she was sure he wouldn't peak again Hermione removed her arm and looked down at the words written on the paper. 'Broom closet after class?'

' _How romantic.'_ Hermione rolled her eyes before she glanced over her shoulder at Fleur who sent her a cheeky smile in response to her scowl.

Fleur watched with a grin as Hermione quickly replied, eagerly looking down at her paper for her response, but upon seeing the simple 'No' her smile dropped. She looked back up at Hermione who was going back to writing down notes, but Fleur didn't give up easily. She quickly scribbled down 'please?'

Hermione looked back over her shoulder and smiled, shaking her head no at the pouting veela who was trying to do her best to resemble a kicked puppy. 'Nice try.' Hermione mouthed, her grin spreading wider as Fleur huffed and slumped back in her seat and she went back to work.

Fleur simply pushed her notes away from herself, glaring at Viktor's back as he quietly conversed with the bookworm in front of her. ' _So zis is 'ow she ees going to play eet.'_

" _ **Hard at work I see."**_ Odette mumbled quietly to Fleur sitting in her seat scheming.

Fleur just crossed her arms and looked off to the side, impatiently waiting for the class to end so she could pull Hermione away from the Bulgarian who always seemed to get in her way.

The second class was dismissed Fleur quickly packed up her things, ignoring a very amused Odette, as she scrambled after the young prodigy. She turned the corner, walking quickly, but was stopped by a loud voice calling out to her.

"Oi! Delacour!"

Fleur sighed, pausing in her steps, and turned to see Ginevra Weasley hurrying after her. "Oui?"

"So . . ." Ginny rubbed her arm awkwardly. "'Mione told me everything was a huge misunderstanding so I guess I'm . . ." Ginny gulped while Fleur watched her curiously, she really was horrible at apologies. "I-I'm sorry for what I said. I was a right git."

"I understand Mademoiselle Weasley." Fleur surprised the red-head by her easy acceptance of her apology. "'Ermione is your best friend. I would 'ave done ze same."

"Y-yeah." Ginny nodded her head. "I also heard about what you did to Malfoy."

"'e 'ad eet coming." Fleur replied nonchalantly.

"I heard it was bloody brilliant." Ginny grinned. "I just wish I could have been there to see it."

Fleur just shrugged, completely not used to Ginny being pleasant with her. "'e was getting on my nerves."

Ginny laughed at Fleur's response. "You know, you're alright Delacour. You're already starting to sound like a true Gryffindor."

"Merci?" Fleur didn't really know how to respond to Ginny's praise and approval.

"Anyways, I have to get to class." Ginny started to walk off, but turned around eyeing the veela carefully. "This doesn't mean I don't still have my eye on you though Delacour."

Fleur just rolled her eyes and waved goodbye to the red-head now hurrying down the stairs. She looked around once more, hoping to see Hermione nearby, but frowned when she realized Ginny Weasley stole her opportunity from her. ' _Damn. I will just 'ave to try 'arder tomorrow.'_ Fleur grumbled to herself as she stomped off to her next class.

/

The next day Hermione found herself still smiling; she was rather enjoying leaving Fleur hanging and begging for her attention. ' _Some rejection is good for that girl. Merlin knows her ego doesn't need a boost.'_ Hermione thought to herself as she entered the dining hall for breakfast, surprised when she didn't see the blonde at her usual spot. ' _Maybe she got a late start.'_ Hermione shrugged to herself as she started to dig into her food only to hear Ron choking on his own.

"How many times have I told you to pace yourself Ronald?" Hermione sighed as she looked up at the red-faced boy, his eyes wide.

Hermione noticed his gaze on the entrance to the dining hall and looked over out of curiosity; what she saw made her drop her spoon into her bowl. Fleur Delacour breezed into the hall in her uniform, but it seemed the bottom was a little shorter than usual showing off her long legs and the top was further down showing off the perfect amount of cleavage.

"Bloody Hell . . ." Ron finally spoke when his throat was cleared from the contents blocking his airways. "She looks even better than usual . . ."

Hermione didn't say anything, she couldn't. She just watched in awe as Fleur strolled in as if she owned the place and when bright blue caught her lingering gaze Fleur just smirked and sent a wink in her direction. ' _She did this on purpose.'_ Hermione thought with a blush as she quickly turned back to her food, trying not to give Fleur the satisfaction of knowing she had effectively caught her attention.

"You okay 'Mione?" Harry smirked at the brunette that found her oatmeal suddenly very interesting. "You look a little red."

"I'm fine." Hermione shot Harry a warning look.

"You sure?"

Hermione kicked Harry under the table, making the raven-haired boy burst out in laughter. "Mind your own business." Hermione grumbled.

/

Later that day Hermione found herself walking to Defense Against the Dark Arts faster than she normally did, surely it had nothing to do with the veela she knew would be there, that would just be absurd.

When she entered she saw the blonde sitting in her usual seat, her hands folded neatly in front of her. Hermione paused for a moment and took in her slender shoulders that were now exposed, the delicate curve of her neck, her long golden hair that cascaded down her bare shoulders and back; it was like she was in a daze but she quickly shook her head to break herself out of it. ' _Knock it off right now Hermione Granger.'_ Hermione inwardly scolded herself. ' _This is what she wants.'_

It was almost as if Fleur had a sixth sense, because a couple seconds after Hermione walked in her artic gaze was on her with an amused sparkle dancing in her bright orbs. She patted the seat next to her, urging Hermione to sit next to her, but Hermione wasn't about to let the blonde win that easily so she decided on taking the open seat next to Neville instead.

Hermione had to hold back a laugh when Fleur's face dropped almost immediately, frowning at the raised eyebrow Hermione shot her in response to her obvious dismissal. _'Serves her right.'_ Hermione thought to herself as she pulled out her notes with a grin firmly in place.

Within moments Fleur was writing on her paper and this time Hermione was waiting for the note that was sure to come. Her grin grew wider when Fleur's neat cursive showed up on her parchment, but she hastily dropped her smile to give off an uncaring appearance. 'You are too cruel.'

'I have no idea what you're talking about.' Hermione replied almost instantly, trying to keep the corners of her mouth from quirking up when Fleur looked back at her with a pout before she went back to writing.

'What do I have to do to get five minutes of your time?'

Hermione felt her heart flutter at the veela's question who was now looking at her pleadingly. ' _Why does she have to be so bloody adorable?'_ Hermione thought for a moment, unable to contain the smile that was spreading on her face at Fleur's persistence.

'I don't know. Get creative.' Hermione replied and Fleur looked back at Hermione with a raised eyebrow while Hermione just shrugged her shoulders.

A grin spread across Fleur's face as she went back to her parchment, her hand moving in fast strokes, and switching between colors every now and then. Hermione watched the blonde curiously as she worked as quickly as possible and a couple minutes later she was surprised to look down at her parchment to see a blue rose slowly blossoming on the page. She looked back up to see Fleur beaming with pride at her creation and when she looked down once more she saw the words 'Now will you snog me?' on her page.

Neville started to look over at her page curiously, but Hermione quickly covered it up, a dark blush forming on her cheeks. She looked up to see the grin spreading wider on Fleur's face who was obviously trying to hold back her laughter.

"Everything okay Hermione?" Neville frowned.

"F-fine." Hermione quickly covered up, shooting Fleur a scathing glare. "Just feeling kind of tired." She mumbled as she faked a stretch across the desk to keep Neville from seeing Fleur's question.

"If you say so." Neville shrugged as he went back to his book while Hermione discreetly scribbled her response.

'You're going to have to do better than that.'

Fleur just huffed when she saw the words written down and once more her hand was moving in quick strokes on the page before a heart showed up on Hermione's parchment. The brunette let a small laugh escape her lips when the heart broke in half and one side fell down the page. She looked back up to see Fleur pouting once more and she shrugged in response as Sirius strode into class.

"Alright, you lot. We're going to be dueling today so take your positions."

Everyone dutifully stood up while Fleur eyed Hermione who was doing her best to ignore the veela that had been trying to get her attention for two whole days now. Anyone else would have already caved in when they saw her in her attire, but Hermione was a much tougher cookie to crack.

"Come on Longbottom." Malfoy laughed when he saw Hermione knock the brunette down almost effortlessly. "You can't really be that pitiful."

Hermione shot Malfoy a glare as she helped a blushing Neville up from the ground. She was about to open her mouth to retort when a spell shot across the room and hit Malfoy right in the chest and a pig tail sprouted from the back of his trousers.

"Oops." Fleur smiled innocently at the horror written on Draco's face.

"Y-you did that on purpose." Malfoy cried out while Hermione had to hold back her laughter as he tried to cover the tail with his hands.

"Je suis désolé." Fleur's smile widened at Hermione's obvious amusement she was trying to hide. "I slipped."

"You're not going to let her get away with that are you!?" Draco looked to Sirius trying to hide his own smile.

"Oh, come now Draco. It was an accident." Sirius replied as diplomatically as he could given the situation. "You should probably go to the infirmary though."

"I 'ope eet eesn't permanent." Fleur kept up her innocent act, but Draco knew the implications of what she said and scurried to the nurse.

"Do try to take better aim Miss Delacour." Sirius turned his attention to Fleur with an amused twinkle in his eyes.

"Oui professeur." Fleur replied, sending Hermione a wink as she went back to her own duel.

Hermione grinned once more at the blonde before she turned her attention back to the task at hand. ' _Now that was definitely creative.'_

/

When class ended Fleur got up from her seat, expecting to see Hermione, but frowned when she saw the brunette had already slipped out of the class without her noticing. ' _She ditched me again.'_ Fleur huffed as she walked out into the hallway. She inwardly sulked at Hermione blowing her off as she descended the spiral staircase; she was about to pass a tapestry when a hand shot out from behind it and snatched her wrist, pulling her into a dark corridor.

She opened her mouth to protest, but when she felt a familiar pair of soft lips press against her own all thought of protesting died on her tongue. Small, but strong hands pressed her against the cold stone of the wall as Hermione deepened the kiss, tangling her hands in Fleur's long blonde hair.

"That was bloody brilliant." Hermione said when she finally pulled away from a very disoriented veela.

"What was?" Fleur asked in a daze.

Hermione just laughed when she saw how brightly Fleur's eyes were glowing; it amazed her that those artic blues turned neon and glowed so quickly from just one kiss. "What you did to Malfoy."

"Oh." Fleur grinned. "So zat was creative enough for you?"

"Definitely." Hermione replied as she leaned in once more to capture Fleur's lips.

' _ef zis ees what I get for 'exing zat little rat I will 'ave to do eet more often.'_ Fleur thought to herself as she caved in immediately, kissing Hermione with just as much passion. She had been wanting to do this since they had departed the other night, it was all she could seem to think about.

The fire in Fleur's chest increased tenfold when Hermione gripped the back of her neck, pulling her in to deepen the kiss, and she ran her tongue across Fleur's lower lip before she slipped it into her mouth. To say Fleur was surprised by Hermione's actions would be an understatement. How could she have possibly known that the famously 'prudish' Hermione Granger was an expert kisser and was so bold?

Hermione bit down on Fleur's lower lip a little harder than Fleur expected and she felt a pleasurable shiver run down her spine before she stepped forward, pushing Hermione back until she was pressed against the wall two feet behind her.

Fleur's lips trailed from Hermione's mouth down to her neck, biting on the soft flesh, causing a soft moan to slip from Hermione's lips; the sound turning Fleur on more than she expected it would.

"Fleur." Hermione gasped out when Fleur used her tongue to massage the spot she had abused before she sucked on the flesh; her veela demanding she mark the bookworm as hers. Her hands roamed down Hermione's sides until they came in contact with her firm butt, making Hermione involuntarily arch her back and bite her lower lip.

Fleur hummed her appreciation against Hermione's neck as she bravely grasped Hermione's shapely butt, pulling her closer. She had often wondered what Hermione's butt would feel like in her hands, but once again Hermione Granger exceeded her expectations; it fit perfectly as if the golden girl was created just for her.

She gripped Hermione a little tighter, one hand moving to Hermione's thigh, but the bookworm quickly gripped Fleur's wrist. Before Fleur could even question Hermione's actions Hermione flipped them around and pinned her wrists to the wall.

"Don't get too ahead of yourself now." Hermione smirked as she leaned in to capture Fleur's swollen lips in another heated kiss.

Fleur would be lying if she said Hermione taking control and pinning her to the wall wasn't hot; it was beyond what she expected the young prodigy to do. She wasn't one to submit to others, but submitting to Hermione Granger felt entirely too good for her to even try to protest.

She had to hold back a moan when Hermione pressed her body against hers, keeping a firm grip on her wrists as she trailed kisses down her jaw to her own slender neck which she proceeded to bite even harder than Fleur bit her.

"'Ermione . . ." Fleur wiggled and tried to plead with the brunette to relinquish her hold so her hands were free to roam as they pleased, but Hermione was having none of it. "S'il vous plaît . . ."

Hermione just ignored the blonde and pressed her lips firmly against Fleur's to silence her request, leaving Fleur to happily comply and give in to those lips she now craved more than her favorite sweets. Fleur tried to lean her head forward more to deepen the kiss further, but Hermione just pulled back and relinquished her hold.

"Five minutes is up." Hermione smiled as she went to walk down the dark corridor.

"Quelle?" Fleur quickly snatched Hermione's wrist before she could depart, her brightly glowing neon eyes pleading with Hermione to stay.

"You said five minutes." Hermione had to stop herself from laughing at the adorably confused look on Fleur's face. "It's been five minutes."

"Surely you knew I meant more zan five minutes." Fleur pouted as Hermione pulled her wrist from Fleur's grasp.

"If you wanted more than five minutes then maybe you should learn to control those wandering hands." Hermione replied with a smile and shrugged before she turned to leave. "Au revoir Fleur." Hermione said mockingly as she waved over her shoulder and disappeared down the corridor.

Fleur just let out a sigh, leaning against the wall with a dreamy look in her eyes. "You are too cruel 'Ermione Granger."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Looks like things are starting to get interesting and someone has it bad for Hermione Granger :3 Hope you guys liked the new chapter and as always, I would love to hear your thoughts :D


	14. Feelings Are Fatal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone leaving comments, kudos, and bookmarking :D I truly appreciate it :) Now, for this chapter, the song that inspired me is Feelings are Fatal by mxmtoon. I thought it fit the chapter quite well :)

The next day Fleur found herself sitting in potions, grinning like the cat who ate the canary as she patiently waited for Hermione to arrive. She knew Harry was taking a crack at his egg once more and was eager to partner up with the brunette; surely Hermione wouldn't blow her off again after their heated time together in the closet.

Fleur rested her head on her hand as her thoughts drifted back to the day before. How Hermione took control, how she teased her, but gave her enough to leave her wanting more. ' _You really are an anomaly 'Ermione Granger.'_ Fleur thought to herself with a soft sigh and then Hermione strolled in almost as if Fleur had summoned her.

The veela perked up almost immediately, sitting up straighter in her chair when amber eyes caught her own. Fleur smiled over at Hermione, but only received a scowl in response causing Fleur to falter. ' _What could 'ave possibly 'appened een ze last sixteen 'ours to make 'er look at me like zat?'_

Hermione went to breeze past Fleur to sit next to someone else, probably Viktor, but the champions reflexes were fast. She quickly snatched the side of Hermione's robe, tugging her over to the seat next to her; there was no way she was going to let Hermione pair up with that smug Bulgarian again.

"Let go." Hermione grumbled softly when she was pulled to stand next to the persistent blonde.

"Sit wiz me." Fleur ignored Hermione's sour mood, smiling despite the glare that was sent in her direction.

"Harry-"

"'Arry ees working on 'is egg today." Fleur interrupted Hermione before she could come up with an excuse. "So zat means you are partnering up wiz me." ' _Cause I will be damned eef she sits wiz zat dirty brute again.'_

"Does it now?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the overly confident veela.

"Oui." Fleur's smile widened as she nodded her head.

Hermione crossed her arms, leaning her weight onto her left foot. "And how do you figure that?"

"Well-" Fleur started but was promptly interrupted by Snape breezing into the room.

"Turn to page three hundred and twenty." Snape didn't so much as greet the class before he began his lesson, his face hard as usual. "Today we will be brewing felix felicis."

Hermione went to move, but Snape already narrowed in on her before she could take a seat with someone else. "Miss Granger." Hermione stiffened when Snape turned his sharp dark gaze to her. "Do you intend on joining us in this lesson or are you going to stand in the isle the entire class?"

"S-sorry professor." Hermione's face reddened when the entire class turned their attention to her and she promptly sat next to a smirking veela.

"So nice of you to join me." Fleur spoke softly as Snape started to write down the ingredients they would need.

Hermione just shot Fleur another scathing look before she stomped off to grab the cauldron and ingredients they required, leaving Fleur even more confused. Usually Hermione seemed to enjoy their banter, but she seemed almost annoyed with her today and when she returned she simply ignored the questioning looks Fleur gave her as she organized the ingredients.

"You look tres belle today." Fleur tried to break the ice, putting on her most charming smile only for Hermione to glare at her out of the corner of her eye. "'Ermione . . ." Fleur frowned when Hermione ignored her compliment and continued on with what she was doing. Just yesterday those same lips that were in a straight line were upon her own and those hands fiddling with the cauldron were all over her; what could she have possibly done in the short time span of then and now to have Hermione Granger so irked? "Did I do somezing wrong?"

"You know damn well what you did." Hermione grumbled as she shuffled things around.

"What did I do?" Fleur replied dumbly and Hermione whirled around about to raise her voice, but was reminded of where she was when she saw Viktor giving her a questioning look.

"You gave me a bloody hickey." Hermione hissed and Fleur almost burst out laughing at how adorably upset Hermione was by it.

"Je suis desole 'Ermione." Fleur tried to keep her face straight, but the corners of her mouth betrayed her as they quirked up. "Eet was an accident."

"Wipe that smug look off of your face this instant." Hermione narrowed her eyes and pointed her finger in Fleur's face. "I'll have you know it took me thirty minutes of careful makeup application just to slightly hide it."

"Make up?" Fleur raised an eyebrow and Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Don't act like you don't know what make up is Fleur. Even you use it."

"Zat ees not what I was alluding to." Fleur's amused grin returned to her face as Hermione huffed and went to work on cutting up some ingredients. "And you gave me one too."

"Well . . ." Hermione paused what she was doing. "You started it."

"Eef I remember correctly you were ze one zat pulled me into ze closet and-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence." Hermione's eyes darted around the room and Fleur let out an amused chuckle. "It's not funny." Hermione grumbled as she continued to cut up the root.

"You know . . ." Fleur moved in to stand a little too close to Hermione making the prefect stiffen and blush. A small smile graced Fleur's face at Hermione's reaction to her proximity, but she knew there were always prying eyes on them so she pretended to look at the book and read the instructions as she spoke. "Zere are spells to fix zat."

"There are?" Hermione paled as she turned her attention to the heiress staring intently at the text, trying not to laugh.

"Oui."

"Bloody hell . . ." Hermione groaned. ' _Of course there is.'_

Fleur bit her lower lip as she discreetly shifted her gaze around the room to make sure no one was watching the pair before she moved in just a little closer. "I could give you anozer one and show you how eet works." Fleur went to touch Hermione's waist but her hand was quickly slapped away.

Hermione shot Fleur a warning look. "Hands to yourself."

"I was just trying to grab ze vial." Fleur tried to act nonchalant as she reached once more and grabbed a vial next to the brunette.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You know, you're not as clever or as cute as you think you are."

"You zink I'm cute?" Fleur's cheshire grin returned. She knew that Hermione was not saying that at all, but poking and prodding the young prodigy had become her new favorite past time.

"That's not what I-"

"You're too kind Mademoiselle Granger." Fleur continued on.

Hermione shook her head, a small smile forming on her face. "Are you going to actually help me make this potion or are you just going to stand there trying to flirt with me little miss conceited?"

"I can do both." Fleur shrugged as she started to mix some ingredients.

/

When class was over Fleur slowly packed up her things to prolong her time together with the Gryffindor. "So . . . I can show you zat spell een ze astronomy tower tonight eef you would like." Fleur kept a casual tone as students started to exit the classroom.

Hermione just shifted her gaze to the side, eyeing the blonde as she gathered her own things. "You really don't give up do you?"

"Non." Fleur grinned. "So tonight . . .?"

"Can't." Hermione shrugged and had to fight the smirk that threatened to appear when Fleur groaned. "I promised Harry I would help him."

"Well what about tomorrow?"

"I have prefect duties." A laugh slipped out of Hermione's mouth when Fleur huffed and proceeded to mumble in French, clearly disappointed with Hermione's response.

"So when can I get more zan five minutes of your time?" Fleur pouted.

"Hmmmmm." Hermione tapped her finger to her chin in thought. "I'll have to check my schedule."

"'Ermione." Fleur whined as the young prodigy exited the classroom, laughing as she left a very displeased veela in her wake. ' _Everytime I zink I 'ave zat girl she seems to slip zrough my fingers.'_ Fleur sighed as she slung her bag over her shoulder, ignoring the questioning look Veronique gave her, already trying to come up with ways to get Hermione Granger alone.

/

Two days had passed and much to Fleur's chagrin Hermione was true to her word; the only time she saw the prefect was when they passed each other in the hallway or during meals where she would proceed to shoot Hermione hopeful looks which Hermione just waved off with a simple smile. She didn't know why she craved the young Gryffindor's attention so much, it was starting to drive her mad. Usually when she was at this point with someone the roles were reversed. The other person would be begging her for her attention, trying to tie her down into a relationship, but Hermione did no such thing; it was completely confusing.

It was now Friday, classes had just ended, and Fleur was on a mission to get some alone time with Hermione Granger. She walked into the dining hall only to see Hermione's usual spot empty so she turned on her heel and headed for the next place she was sure the Gryffindor would be.

She peaked her head into the library and a smile spread across her features when she saw the brunette with her nose in a book, obviously deeply enthralled by whatever she was reading. ' _She ees so cute when her brow crinkles like zat.'_

"Bonjour." Fleur spoke as she approached the table and took a seat next to the girl who continued reading as if Fleur hadn't said anything. "'Ermione." Fleur waved her hand in front of Hermione's face, causing the prefect to jump a little in surprise, but when amber met Fleur's electric gaze she seemed to relax.

"Hey Fleur." Hermione gave Fleur a half smile before her bright eyes went back to the text.

"Eet seems you are finally free to 'ang out wiz me." Fleur moved her seat a little closer to the girl still drawn to whatever she was reading.

"What makes you say that?" Hermione mumbled absentmindedly.

"Well you are 'ere so you obviously aren't 'elping 'Arry today, zere are no classes tomorrow, and you 'ave no prefect duties tonight."

Hermione couldn't help the small smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth at Fleur's continued persistence. "What about me reading in the library makes you think I am free to hang out?"

"Aren't you zough?" Fleur frowned, crossing her arms.

"I have to get two essays done by Monday and I have to research some things for Harry." Hermione glanced back up and had to stop herself from grinning at the adorable grimace on the champion's face. "So no, I'm not free."

"Well take a break." Fleur pushed.

"I can't."

"Well come study in my room zen." Fleur smiled, feeling proud of herself for coming up with a good compromise. "Eet ees better zan being stuck een zis stuffy library."

Hermione just raised an eyebrow at the grinning foreigner. "You want me to leave this "stuffy" library to come study in your stuffy room? "

"My room ees not stuffy." Fleur scowled and Hermione had to bite back a laugh at the look on the blonde's face.

"Yeah, well, that sounds like a recipe for trouble." Hermione rolled her eyes with a light smile as she went back to the book.

"I promise I will be'ave and I will keep my 'ands to myself." Fleur pleaded, putting on her best puppy dog face.

Hermione just scoffed as she continued scanning the page. "I don't believe you."

"You can tie me up eef you would like." Fleur purred into Hermione's ear, eliciting a soft shudder from the brunette.

"You're not helping your case at all." Hermione simply replied, trying to brush off the fire burning through her veins at the thought.

"I am kidding of course." Fleur quickly covered as she moved a little further away from Hermione. "Please 'Ermione, come study wiz me. I 'ave zings to get done too."

Hermione paused her reading at the pleading tone in Fleur's voice and glanced up to see those artic eyes boring into her soul; that's where she went wrong. She should have just kept her head down, then Fleur wouldn't have been able to persuade her, but seeing the French witch's full lips in a pout did her in and she knew she couldn't deny her request. "Fine." Hermione sighed and a bright smile lit up Fleur's face. "But no funny business." She pointed an accusing finger at Fleur, but the Beuxbaton student's mood could not be dampened by Hermione's stern tone.

Fleur held up her hand, sitting up a little straighter. "You 'ave my word Mademoiselle Granger."

"I'll meet you at the carriage in an hour." Hermione spoke as she closed the book and stood from her seat.

"Bon." Fleur nodded her head and smiled as she watched the brunette depart.

Fleur couldn't help but feel a little giddy as she made her way to the carriage to tidy up her "stuffy" room as Hermione so lovingly put it. She entered the carriage and went to go to her room when Veronique invaded her vision.

" _ **There you are."**_ Veronique grinned as Odette appeared beside her.

" _ **Here I am."**_ Fleur raised an eyebrow at the pair. " _ **Did you need something?"**_

" _ **We got invited to sneak out with some of the Hogwarts students tonight to go to the local pubs and wanted to give you fair warning so you could get ready, because we all know how long you take."**_ Veronique smirked and Fleur rolled her eyes.

" _ **I can't go."**_ Fleur shrugged and walked past her friends.

Veronique frowned as she followed close behind. " _ **What? Why not?"**_

" _ **I need to get some studying done."**_ Fleur figured the lie was close enough to the truth that Veronique wouldn't be able to figure out what was going on.

Veronique found it hard to hide her skepticism. " _ **Since when do you skip out on going out and having fun to stay in and study?"**_

" _ **Since I'm behind in classes because of this tournament."**_

Veronique narrowed her eyes at the blonde trying to brush her off; there was something going on, but she couldn't quite figure out what it was. " _ **You're lying."**_

" _ **Think what you want."**_ Fleur replied dismissively as she entered her room, closing the door behind her before Veronique could say anything more.

Veronique stood there for a moment, glaring at the hard wood in front of her. Fleur was acting very unusual and she knew she was missing something. She thought back to potions class two days prior and remembered how Hermione and Fleur laughed together as they worked, how their proximity was sometimes a little too close to be considered friendly, how at meals the two would shoot each other little glances and smiles, and then it clicked. Fleur Delacour was making progress with the golden girl and she was keeping it from her. But why?

/

The hour couldn't go by any slower for Fleur; she had tried occupying her time by tidying up her room which was already ridiculously clean and organized. She then spent her time trying on multiple outfits that might please the young Gryffindor and settled on simple tight dark blue skinny jeans and a loose fitting white shirt. Imagine her dismay when she realized that only ate up twenty minutes of her time, leaving her thirty minutes to impatiently pace back and forth in her room, the last ten she spent outside leaning on the carriage hoping to catch a glimpse of brown and blonde hair.

When she finally caught sight of Hermione Granger heading her way she couldn't stop the easy smile that spread across her face upon seeing Hermione dressed in shorts and a black t-shirt carrying her text books in her arms; it would seem they had the same idea to keep their outfits simple. Fleur didn't know why she was so eager to see Hermione and why she was so nervous at the same time; it wasn't like they were getting ready to go on a date, but it sure felt like it.

"Shorts een zis weazer?" Fleur raised an eyebrow when Hermione finally reached her.

"You may not be used to the weather here but I am." Hermione grinned as she nervously fiddled with her book, it would seem Hermione's feelings mirrored her own; Fleur was just better at hiding it.

Fleur just scoffed as she opened the carriage door for her companion. "Après vous."

"Merci." Hermione smiled as she stepped into the beautiful carriage; the last time she had been here she remembered she was completely enamored by the décor, but she had been far too inebriated to truly appreciate it. "It really is gorgeous in here." Hermione spoke quietly as she took in the marble floor and grand staircase in the entryway, but her gaze shifted to the amused veela that chuckled to her left.

"So you 'ave told me." Fleur grinned and Hermione had to refrain from rolling her eyes at Fleur's teasing tone.

"That doesn't count."

"Of course not." Fleur smiled cheekily as she lead the way to her room.

Hermione couldn't help but feel a little self-conscious when she noticed the odd looks she received from the Beuxbatons students they passed. Was it really that odd that she was going to study with Fleur? Did they know about them and what they had been up to? ' _There's no way they know.'_ Hermione tried to shake off the odd feelings and unwelcome thoughts. She had to stop herself from laughing when Fleur shot her peers a warning look and they all quickly averted their gaze; Fleur's ability to scare people was still highly amusing to her.

They had almost reached Fleur's room when another head of beautiful blonde hair walked down the halls and the girl paused in her steps when she saw the two together. Hermione tried to shoot Gabrielle a friendly smile, but the younger Delacour just scowled, giving both a deadly glare before she headed in the opposite direction. Hermione tried to dismiss the disappointed look that shined in those blue eyes, but it bothered her and made her feel uneasy like she was doing something wrong.

"Don't mind 'er." Fleur scoffed as she opened the door to her room and Hermione entered. "She ees always een a sour mood."

"I see." Hermione mumbled as she plopped her books on Fleur's bed and looked around to appreciate the artwork on Fleur's walls. "Did you paint these?" Hermione spoke as she approached a painting of a siren sitting on a rock with a pirate captains hat on surrounded by treasure and skulls; her tail and body were draped in jewelry as she looked out at a ship wreck with a tobacco pipe in her hand.

"Oui." Fleur's tone made it sound like it was nothing, but Hermione was completely amazed by the blonde's talent.

Hermione turned to look at Fleur placing her diary onto her desk. "They're really good."

"Zey're alright."

Hermione tilted her head, observing the perfect specimen ten feet away from her that seemed uncaring about her work. "How odd."

Fleur raised an amused eyebrow as she turned her attention to the bookworm. "What ees?"

"How you can be so completely overconfident and conceited about so many things, but the one thing you should be the most proud of you act like it doesn't matter."

"Eet doesn't." Fleur shrugged.

Hermione frowned at Fleur's response; how could she say her art didn't matter? It was obvious to anyone that she poured so much into it and she was clearly gifted. "Don't say that."

Fleur furrowed her brow in confusion. "Why?" Hermione seemed mildly displeased to say the least at her response; she had been told pursuing a career in art was pointless so many times that she herself had started to believe it. She knew what her duties were, what awaited her when she took over the clan, and there would be no room for her artwork.

"Just . . ." Hermione sighed as she glanced at the painting once more before she went to the bed to sit down. "Don't."

Fleur tried to brush off the pounding of her heart at Hermione's mild scolding; no one had really appreciated her creativity before and told her to be proud of it. It was an odd sensation to say the least. "Okay." She hesitantly conceded, eyeing the brunette opening her text book curiously.

"Where are your books?" Hermione asked absentmindedly as she flipped through the pages and Fleur took a seat at her desk to give Hermione space even though she wanted to do anything but that.

"I'm already done wiz my 'omework."

"What?" Hermione snapped her head up and looked at Fleur suspiciously. "You said-"

Fleur smiled sheepishly in response. "I lied."

"You know I didn't come here to snog you Fleur." Hermione glared at the veela, ready to pack up and leave if this was just a trap.

"I know." Fleur held up her hands defensively. "I will sit over 'ere and keep my word."

Hermione seemed to weigh her options for a minute before she nodded her head in acceptance. "Okay." Hermione went back to her book, pulling out her quill while Fleur opened up her journal and pulled out various colors of quills and pencils. With a flick of Fleur's wand music filled the room making Hermione raise an eyebrow.

"Zis won't bozer you will eet?" Fleur asked as she already started working on her drawing.

"No, it's fine." Hermione mumbled as she focused back on the task at hand, briefly glancing up for one more moment. The corner of her mouth twitched into a little smile as she observed the champion already completely immersed in whatever she was doing, alternating between colors with her brow furrowed. After staring for a good minute she shook her head and inwardly scolded herself for letting herself get distracted so easily and went back to work.

/

An hour later Fleur still sat hunched over her desk as she let the calming music wash over her and let it grease the wheels in her head. Her sapphire eyes flickered over to Hermione for a brief minute, taking in the brunette in her own world of texts and notes. They hadn't said a word to each other the entire time, but Fleur would be lying if she said she didn't find Hermione's presence soothing. It was nice being able to draw without someone hovering over her or pestering her about something she didn't really care about.

She couldn't help but smile when Hermione chewed on the end of her quill thoughtfully; the young prodigy was stuck on something by the look on her face. Fleur found it adorable how Hermione was pressed against her headboard with her knees up so her book could rest on her thighs while she read and wrote; she decided in that moment she really liked Hermione studying in her room. She had never once imagined that when she invited her for a study session there would be actual studying and work being done instead of snogging and other such things. It was different and weird for her, but she would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy it.

As Hermione went back to writing Fleur turned back to her journal and flipped the page, grabbing a dark quill as she started to draw on her fresh canvas. Her eyes kept going back to Hermione between strokes of her quill to make sure she was getting everything just right; she wanted to immortalize this moment for reasons she wasn't sure of yet.

She found herself smiling as she drew in the determined look Hermione bore and questioned coloring in the drawing, but as she looked at her work she realized she liked it much better as a simple outline and settled on subtle shading.

When she was done she looked back up, tapping her quill on the desk for a moment, inwardly battling with herself on what she should do. Showing Hermione the portrait was definitely out of the question, but she wanted to interact with her companion in some way and wanted nothing more than to kiss the serious look off of the Gryffindor's face.

"'Ermione." Fleur spoke softly and Hermione seemed a little startled by the velvety voice that broke through the music that had been surprisingly helpful for her work.

"What's up?" Hermione asked as she looked back down at her paper.

Fleur chewed on her lower lip for a moment, wrestling with herself on how to approach what she wanted to do; something she had been wanting to do since she did it the first time. "Would you mind eef I tried somezing I 'ave been working on on you?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "And what is that?"

Fleur stood up with two quills in her hands and approached the skeptical witch. "Do you trust me?"

"What are you getting at?" Hermione narrowed her eyes.

"Nozing funny I promise." Fleur smiled. "I just 'ave somezing I 'ave been working on and 'ave not 'ad a subject to try eet on."

"So you want me to be your guinea pig?"

"Guinea pig?" Fleur tilted her head to the side, clearly confused as to what that was. "What ees zat?"

Hermione just laughed, sometimes she forgot witches and wizards didn't understand muggle terms. "Nothing. What are you going to try Fleur Delacour?"

"Eets a surprise." Fleur replied with a grin.

Hermione eyed the quills in Fleur's hands suspiciously before her amber eyes flickered back up to eager blue. "You're going to draw on me again aren't you?"

"Only eef you say eet ees okay." Fleur replied while rocking back and forth on her heels right next to the bed.

Hermione seemed to think about it for a moment, but seeing how excited Fleur seemed to be made it impossible for her to turn her down. "Okay, but no funny business."

"Of course." Fleur nodded her head as she sat down next to Hermione and proceeded to grab her thigh.

"Fleur!" Hermione jumped, glaring at the grinning blonde.

"I need your leg Mademoiselle Granger. Would you mind extending eet?"

"Can't you draw somewhere else?" Hermione grumbled.

"S'il vous plaît." Fleur pouted and Hermione knew she couldn't deny the veela when she looked at her like that so with a heavy sigh she extended her leg and Fleur started to draw on her outer thigh.

"Don't even think about trying to go any further up." Hermione shot Fleur a warning look and Fleur just smiled and hummed in agreement.

Hermione had to try not to jump when the quill tickled her, but the slight twitch in her leg told Fleur everything she needed to know and one corner of her mouth twitched up into a half smile, her electric blue eyes briefly glancing up and locking with Hermione's.

Hermione tried to fight the blush warming her cheeks at the amused twinkle in Fleur's eyes. "Sorry." Hermione mumbled. "I'll try not to move."

"Eet ees fine." Fleur replied as she went back to work, quietly humming to the new song that started playing and Hermione tried to get back on task too but the feel of Fleur's soft hand on her thigh and the gentle strokes of the quill were distracting her far more than she cared to admit.

**Im happy for you.**  
**Im smiling for you.**  
**I would do anything, for you**  
**for you.**  
**It always for you.**  
**And never for me.**  
**And I need to stop.**  
**So let me tell you please.**

Hermione attempted to give off the appearance that she was still studying, but she couldn't stop her eyes from drifting back to the beautiful girl next to her drawing on her as if she was her own personal canvas. Watching Fleur immerse herself in her art was probably one of Hermione's favorite past times at this point; the way her pink lips set themselves in a straight line and how her brow crinkled when she concentrated was the cutest thing she had ever seen.

"So . . ." Hermione closed her book and set it to the side when she realized there was no way she was going to be able to concentrate with Fleur touching her like that. "How long have you been drawing?"

**Im always sad.**  
**And Im always lonely.**  
**But I cant tell you.**  
**That im breaking slowly.**  
**Closed doors.**  
**Locked in, no keys.**  
**Keeping my feelings hidden.**  
**There is no ease.**

Fleur's eyes briefly flickered up to her for a moment as she switched quills. "Since I was five."

"And your parents don't approve?"

"Non." Fleur mumbled as her eyebrows knit together; her parents blatant disapproval of her passion was a bit of a sore subject.

Hermione knew she might be pushing things, but she couldn't help the curiosity bubbling in her. She didn't understand how someone with such a wonderful talent could be looked down upon for it. "Why?"

**I need it to stop.**  
**And I want to be able.**  
**To open up, but…**  
**My feelings are fatal.**  
**My feelings are fatal.**

"Zey zink eet ees a distraction from my duties. I 'ave more important zings to worry about zan silly drawings." Fleur couldn't keep the slight tinge of bitterness out of her voice as she spoke.

Hermione frowned at the blonde's response. "And what is more important than your art and happiness?"

"Taking care of ze clan." Fleur replied simply.

"Can't you do both?"

Fleur just chuckled dryly at Hermione's question. "Apparently not."

Hermione furrowed her brow deep in thought when her mind brought her back to Fleur's interaction with her sister. "Does Gabrielle feel the same way?"

**How many times.**  
**Must I keep it inside.**  
**I need to let go.**  
**And I swear that i have tried.**  
**but opening up, means trusting others.**  
**I dont want to bother.**  
**And that is just too much.**  
**So I will keep it inside.**  
**And bury it deep.**  
**I know it is not healthy.**  
**But you wont hear a peep.**

Fleur wasn't expecting that question and it made her pause her ministrations. She had no idea what Gabrielle thought of her love for art; they hardly talked anymore. When they were little her younger sister loved the drawings she would give her, but they had grown up and grown apart; she had no idea what Gabrielle thought anymore. "You are asking a lot of questions." Fleur danced around the subject, looking up at the curious prefect. "Are you nervous 'Ermione?" A sly smirk crossed Fleur's features when Hermione blushed once more.

"N-no! I was just curious." Hermione looked off to the side, desperately trying not to think about the hand that sat on her thigh.

"Eef you say so." Fleur mumbled, her smirk still firmly in place as she went back to moving her hand in gentle strokes.

"I just . . ." Hermione continued on, struggling with what she wanted to say. "I just don't understand how they could say that about your art." Fleur glanced back up at Hermione, subtle surprise written in her gaze. "I don't think it's silly." Hermione said the last part so quietly Fleur almost didn't hear it.

**Though Im always sad.**  
**And Im always lonely.**  
**But I could never tell you.**  
**That Im breaking slowly.**  
**Closed doors.**  
**Locked in, no keys.**  
**Keeping my feelings hidden.**  
**There is no ease.**

Fleur felt a blush creep onto her own cheeks as she stared intently at the drawing on Hermione's thigh and tried to calm the pounding of her heart. She was thoroughly perplexed as to why Hermione would say that and didn't realize how much she needed to hear that until the words had left Hermione Granger's mouth. She had become so used to people appreciating her for just her looks as if she had nothing more to offer than her physical appearance that Hermione's simple statement startled her and she didn't know how to take it so she settled on silence.

**I need it to stop.**  
**And I want to be able.**  
**To open up, but…**  
**My feelings are fatal.**  
**My feelings are fatal.**

Fleur continued drawing for a little while longer and they said nothing to each other, instead choosing to listen to the music playing softly in the room. Even if Fleur felt articulate enough to speak in that moment she wouldn't know what to say so she was grateful for the distraction the music offered.

When she finished up she mumbled a spell she was hoping would actually work and when she pressed on Hermione's thigh with her fingertips the prefect jumped at the sound of a piano going with the melody playing in the room.

"What did you do?" Hermione asked with wide eyes as she finally looked down at the drawing of a small version of piano keys on her thigh.

Fleur couldn't help the smile that overcame her face when she saw she had crossed a new threshold when it came to art. "Eet worked." She looked up at Hermione positively beaming at her accomplishment.

"It can actually function as a piano . . ." Hermione was clearly in awe of this new discovery while Fleur absently played with the keys. "What . . . how . . .?" Hermione looked back to the proud veela, amazement and admiration shining in her amber eyes.

Fleur just shrugged, trying to act nonchalant even though she was beyond proud of what she had done.

"You're bloody brilliant." Hermione's grin matched Fleurs own as she leaned forward and captured Fleur's lips in a kiss that took the champion by surprise.

Hermione pulled away with a sheepish look on her face, rubbing the back of her head nervously as Fleur watched her with glazed over glowing electric eyes. "Sorry, I um . . ." Hermione started to blush under Fleur's curious and prodding gaze. "I just think it needs to be said that your art is brilliant and you shouldn't listen to your parents Fleur. You have an amazing talent and I'm grateful you're sharing it with me and . . ." Hermione felt her heart starting to flutter in her chest at the look Fleur was giving her; she could tell Fleur had no encouragement and the thought of the blonde constantly being discouraged bothered her for reasons she was unsure of; all she knew was that she needed Fleur to know that her talents were appreciated by at least one person. "Fuck it." Hermione let out a sigh before she leaned back in, pressing her lips against Fleur's once more; she just couldn't hold herself back when Fleur was looking at her so intently.

Fleur was completely taken aback by everything Hermione had just said and an unfamiliar feeling simmered under the surface of her skin at Hermione's sincere statement. Then Hermione kissed her, further confusing the veela; this wasn't like the previous kisses they had exchanged. Hermione's lips were softly dancing against her own instead of the usual fiery passion she was used to not just from Hermione but anyone who kissed her. When people kissed her it was usually needy and desperate, but it felt as if Hermione wanted to take her time and show her appreciation instead of trying to claim Fleur as her own.

Fleur felt light, euphoric even at the unfamiliar touch of someone who actually cared about her as a person and not just what her body could do for them. This kiss was so much more intoxicating than the ones before and she didn't even think that was possible so with a shaky hand she reached forward, tangling her hand in Hermione's curly brown hair, pulling her in a little more to deepen the kiss as she crawled forward and straddled the Gryffindor.

Fleur pulled away from the kiss for a moment, looking down at Hermione to make sure this position was alright and when the prodigy showed no signs of discomfort Fleur dove back in to reclaim Hermione's lips for her own as she carefully placed her hands on the headboard above Hermione's head, very aware of their agreement.

As she caved in and slowly kissed the girl that had sufficiently captured her interest her grip on the headboard tightened when Hermione's hands tentatively slid up her thighs over her jeans, igniting a fire in her chest she didn't want to extinguish.

When Hermione moved her hands further up to grip her hips Fleur's instincts seemed to kick in and she rolled her hips into the girl beneath her, almost letting out a moan at the heavenly feeling. She wanted so much more in this moment and it seemed her hips had a mind of their own as she continued to slowly roll them against Hermione whose grip tightened on her.

Fleur took her time kissing down to Hermione's neck, taking care to not bite too hard on the soft flesh, which was incredibly hard to do when she could hear and feel Hermione's labored breaths and soft sighs tickle her ear. She must have found a sensitive spot on Hermione's neck, because Hermione's breath caught in her throat and Fleur gripped the headboard so tight in response that she feared she would break it. Fleur tried to calm herself and keep her resolve, but if the Gryffindor kept pulling at her hips she didn't know if she would be able to control herself much longer.

She kissed down to under Hemione's chin above her chest, her eyes briefly opening to look at the blissful look on Hermione's face and then her gaze flickered to the small scar on her chest that was barely visible, but she saw it all the same.

It seemed Hermione could sense Fleur's gaze on the imperfection on her skin when Fleur slowed her kisses and she pushed herself back a bit, making Fleur sit up and look down at her curiously.

Hermione just blushed and pulled her shirt up a bit more to try to hide the mark, making Fleur frown. "I 'ave already seen eet 'Ermione. Zere ees no need to be self-conscious. I zink you are tres belle."

"I'm not self-conscious about it." Hermione immediately became defensive as she shifted her gaze to the side, avoiding Fleur's own curious looks.

Fleur raised an eyebrow in response. "Clearly." Fleur tried to be playful about it, but that far off look appeared in Hermione's amber eyes again, making the Gryffindor look so fragile it broke Fleur's heart. "You know . . ." Fleur started softly, making Hermione shift her attention back to the girl sitting atop of her. "Een Japan broken objects are often replaced wiz gold."

"What are you getting at?" Hermione sighed and tried to swat away Fleur's hand that came up to her chest, but the champion's reflexes were much faster and she avoided the hit, moving to gently stroke one finger over Hermione's shirt where she knew the scar lied beneath.

"Ze flaw ees seen as a unique piece of ze objects history . . ." Fleur's velvety voice made the blush return to Hermione's cheeks as she stroked the scar. "Which adds to eets beauty." Fleur's arctic eyes moved from where she had been staring intently at Hermione's chest and locked with sad amber. "'Ow did you get eet?"

Hermione chewed on her lower lip for a moment, playing with the thought of opening up to Fleur, but the thought was entirely too frightening to her. "Just a prank gone wrong." Hermione lied, trying to put on a smile, but the stern look Fleur gave her made the smile drop almost immediately.

"You are not as clever as you zink you are eizer 'ermione Granger." Fleur shook her head as she leaned forward once more. "But you are much cuter zan you zink you are." Fleur smirked and was about to kiss the flustered prefect beneath her, but her Veronique senses started tingling and she quickly jumped off the perplexed brunette.

Hermione opened her mouth to voice her confusion, but not two seconds later the door to Fleur's room opened and the raven-haired girl Fleur hung around with entered unannounced.

"Oh . . ." Veronique had the decency to act surprised when she saw Hermione Granger lying in Fleur's bed looking disheveled. "I didn't know you 'ad company." A devious smile formed on Veronique's ruby lips causing Hermione to sit up and hurriedly collect her things.

Fleur was seething on the inside as she glared daggers at her cheeky friend; Veronique did this on purpose and she could tell. "We were studying. 'Ermione was 'elping me wiz my potions essay." Fleur tried to cover for Hermione's sake, but she knew Veronique already figured out what happened.

"I zought you finished zat already." Veronique tilted her head to the side, her smirk spreading when she could tell Fleur was grinding her teeth to keep herself from lashing out at her.

"Non, I finished my magical creatures one."

"My mistake zen." Veronique shrugged. "'Ow long 'ave you two been . . ." Her dark green eyes flickered to Hermione gathering her things as calmly as possible, trying to act nonchalant, but she could smell the other girls nervousness from a mile away. "Studying."

Hermione briefly glanced over at raven-haired girl, eyeing her suspiciously; she had never spoken to this Veronique girl, but she rubbed her the wrong way.

"Why?" Fleur rolled her eyes at her friends questions that were obviously geared to make Hermione uncomfortable. "Are you writing a true crime novel?"

Veronique just laughed in response. "Non, I was just curious." She narrowed in on Hermione again before her gaze shifted back to Fleur. "Fleur you are being incredibly rude. Aren't you going to introduce us?"

"'Ermione, zis ees Veronique." Fleur spoke stiffly with her arms crossed. "Veronique, zis ees 'Ermione."

Veronique had to stop herself from laughing at how dry and closed up Fleur could be; it would seem this was a touchy subject for the blonde. "You must excuse Fleur, she ees a bit socially awkward." Veronique put on her best smile as she breezed past Fleur to extend her hand to a very confused Gryffindor. "I am Veronique, Fleur's friend. I 'ave 'eard so much about you 'Ermione Granger. Eet ees truly a pleasure to finally meet you."

"Oh, uh . . . thanks." Hermione hesitantly took the hand offered to her, unsure of how to take this interaction. "It's nice to meet you too."

"I do 'ope Fleur did not bore you too much." Veronique shifted her gaze back to Fleur who was watching the interaction with barely veiled irritation.

"Oh, not at all." Hermione waved Veronique off. "It's nice to study with someone who takes it seriously unlike my other friends."

A devious smirk formed on Veronique's face once more, making Hermione shift uncomfortably. "I bet."

"Well uh, I must get back to Harry, he's completely lost with that bloody egg." Hermione shot Fleur a smile before she turned her attention back to Veronique. "It was nice meeting you Veronique. I suppose I will see you around campus."

"Oui, of course." Veronique nodded and Hermione went to leave the room.

"I can walk you to ze castle eef you would like." Fleur spoke up, looking hopefully at Hermione who just shook her head.

"No, it's okay." Hermione looked back to the raven-haired girl grinning in the corner before she turned her gaze back to the frowning champion. "Thanks for the offer though." And with that Hermione Granger swept out of the room as calmly as possible given the circumstances.

When Veronique was sure Hermione was far enough away she finally spoke again, dropping the act. " _ **I knew it!"**_

" _ **Knew what?"**_ Fleur glared over at her friend.

" _ **You thought you could hide the fact that you're making progress with her from me."**_

" _ **I haven't."**_ Fleur sighed as she sat down at her desk. She didn't know why she was lying to Veronique once more or why she felt oddly protective of Hermione and their budding romance, but all she knew was that Veronique always made trouble. " _ **We were really just studying."**_

" _ **And that is why she was so disheveled?"**_ Veronique raised an eyebrow at the blonde pulling her textbook out to give the illusion that she really was working on an essay.

" _ **I have no idea what you're talking about Veronique."**_ Fleur sighed. " _ **Now can you go so I can focus on my essay?"**_

" _ **Perhaps I was wrong about Hermione Granger."**_ Veronique pressed when she saw Fleur was trying to come off as aloof when she knew that wasn't the truth. She wasn't stupid and she knew that at the very least the two had been snogging when she walked in.

" _ **What do you mean?"**_ Fleur asked absentmindedly as she flipped through her textbook.

" _ **Perhaps she isn't as pure as I thought she was. I mean, if she was in your room doing merlin knows what then she can't be that good."**_ Veronique smirked when she saw Fleur visibly stiffen. " _ **Maybe I should take a crack at her if she's that easy."**_

Fleur abruptly stood from her seat at the last statement, glaring daggers at the girl before her. Her veela was thrashing around inside of her, demanding blood, but Fleur kept herself steady as she spoke coldly. " _ **Get out."**_

" _ **Did I hit a nerve?"**_ Veronique's green eyes lit up at Fleur's anger. " _ **You're not actually starting to really like her are you?"**_

Fleur took a threatening step forward, clenching her hands into a tight fist. " _ **Get. Out."**_

" _ **I'm just kidding Fleur."**_ Veronique rolled her eyes as she headed towards the door. " _ **I know you would never fall for a nerd like her. Lighten up."**_

Fleur stood there for a moment after she heard the click of the door signaling Veronique was officially gone. She pondered the devilish girls' statement for a moment; there was no way she was starting to fall for Hermione Granger. That would be absurd. Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They're finally starting to get closer and develop a bond ;-; Am I the only one who finds it adorable that Fleur just wanted Hermione nearby? And curse Veronique for ruining the moment! D:


	15. She's In Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know what time it is! Tool time! Wait, no . . . that's not right . . . lmao please excuse me for my horrible jokes and take this new update as my apology lol   
> The songs that inspired me during this chapter are Cheerleader, the Pentatonix version and She's in love from The Little Mermaid musical. If you haven't been able to tell up until now, I'm a sucker for musicals lol Okay, I'll shut up now so you guys can read the newest installment :)

Hermione hurriedly made her way to the castle, trying to shake the odd feeling that Veronique gave her; it was almost as if the dark-haired girl was messing with her. She couldn't be sure, but she could swear she could see a mischievous twinkle in those dark green eyes when she was talking to her. ' _There's no way she knows something right . . .? Fleur did seem thoroughly irritated when she came in so I doubt it.'_ Hermione chewed on her lower lip as she entered the common room and was going to head up to her room when Ginny's voice halted her.

"Oi, what you got there 'Mione?" Ginny asked from the couch sitting next to Harry and Ron.

Hermione let out a sigh and turned to her amused friend. "It's a book Ginny. Sometimes people read them to learn things."

"Hardi har har." Ginny narrowed her eyes at the smirking brunette. "I was talking about that drawing on your thigh there."

Hermione's face paled as she looked down at her thigh then back to the red head looking at her curiously. "N-nothing."

"Come on, let us see." Ron stood up and started to head over to get a closer look.

Hermione panicked when she saw her friends zeroing in on her. "Just a project." Hermione backed up when they approached and bumped into a chair making the keys ring out.

"What the hell was that?" Ginny started to lean down to get a better look and Hermione's cheeks heated up.

"I told you it's nothing." Hermione stood up a little straighter and turned quickly on her heel to head up the stairs. "Now if you don't mind I need to get some rest."

"It's a little early for you to turn in don't you think?" Harry raised an eyebrow, but Hermione just continued on up the steps.

"You know, you're getting really weird in your older age Hermione." Ginny laughed as Hermione tried to gracefully walk up the steps as if she was unaffected by their questions, but failed terribly.

"Sod off!" Hermione yelled over her shoulder causing a big grin to spread across Ginny's face.

"She's hiding something." Ginny looked to Harry who was watching where Hermione disappeared with a little smile on his face.

"Let her have her secrets Gin." Harry looked to Ginny who proceeded to cross her arms and look at the boy who lived accusingly.

"You know what it is don't you?"

Harry just shrugged before he went back to his text. "I haven't the foggiest."

/

Hermione let out a relieved sigh when she finally entered her room, closing the door tightly behind her. She was beyond thankful that being a prefect meant she got to have her own quarters so she could find a little respite from her friends and their incessant questions.

She dropped her book onto her desk then settled down on her bed where her eyes started to roam back to the piano keys on her thigh. A ghost of smile graced her lips as she idly played with the keys, she was no musician, but she enjoyed playing with the mini piano all the same. As she toyed with the drawing her thoughts drifted back to Fleur and it was almost as if the blonde was with her now lying on her stomach and drawing on her with a serene look on her face. Hermione's smile grew when she recalled the intense way Fleur's bright blue eyes locked onto her, how her fingers played with the skin on her thigh, and then how she was positively beaming when her spell worked.

Hermione flopped down onto her back, looking up at the ceiling with glazed over eyes as her fingers ran up to her chest and absentmindedly ran up and down the scar hidden beneath her clothing. Not too long ago it was Fleur's fingers doing the same as she spoke such sweet words; Hermione didn't know Fleur was capable of such depth and sensitivity. Their banter had been mostly playful and shallow, but as she thought back to her time in the carriage she could feel her heartbeat pick up under her fingertips. It felt a lot more intimate than she was expecting and usually she might shy away from something like that, but it was a nice contrast to how they normally interacted. ' _Bloody Hell . . .'_ Hermione's eyes widened when everything hit her like a ton of bricks; her obvious swooning, her pounding heart, she was falling for the Beuxbatons champion. ' _There's no way.'_ Hermione blushed as she sat up in her bed, biting her lip as she looked back down to her thigh. ' _Right?'_

/

Back at the Beuxbatons carriage Veronique burst into Odette's room with a wicked grin adorning her face. " _ **You're never going to believe what I just saw."**_

" _ **What did you see?"**_ Odette asked without looking up from her nails she was currently painting; she really didn't want to deal with Veronique and her schemes, she just more put up with her because of Fleur.

" _ **Hermione Granger in Fleur's room."**_ Veronique's grin grew wider when Odette looked up at her. " _ **They were obviously snogging."**_

Odette did her best to look surprised; she had had a sneaking suspicion that something was going on, but it was obvious Fleur didn't want to tell her about it just yet. " _ **Oh? You walked in on them?"**_

" _ **Well not exactly."**_ Veronique sat down on Odette's bed.

' _Sure, make yourself at 'ome.'_ Odette inwardly rolled her eyes at how little Veronique cared about other people's private space. " _ **Then how do you know they were snogging?"**_

" _ **It was obvious. Hermione was completely disheveled and definitely nervous."**_

" _ **If something was going on wouldn't Fleur tell us though?"**_ Odette tried to steer Veronique in a different direction; she knew that the wicked girl was like a dog with a bone once she got ahold of some good gossip. Fleur was keeping whatever was going on secret for a reason, something she never did, and Odette would be lying if she said she wasn't curious too, but she respected whatever Fleur's reasoning was.

" _ **That's the weird part about it."**_ Veronique crossed her arms as she leaned back. " _ **Fleur completely denied anything happening and got really defensive. It's so unlike her."**_

" _ **Maybe nothing did happen and maybe you interrupted her when she was trying to make a move."**_ Odette shrugged.

" _ **Yeah, actually that makes sense."**_ Veronique grinned. " _ **I was starting to worry she might actually like her, but there's no way."**_

" _ **Yeah."**_ Odette tried to make her smile not look as uneasy as she felt it was. " _ **That would never happen."**_

/

Fleur had spent the entire night tossing and turning; Veronique's words kept ringing through her head. It couldn't be true. Hermione Granger was just a conquest, nothing more, but if that was true then why was she keeping everything so private?

She sat up in bed the next morning, groggily eyeing one of her paintings hanging on the wall. She stood up and walked up to it, tilting her head to the side as she tried to view it from someone else's perspective. A small smile spread on her face when she recalled how Hermione gazed at it with such wonder; she herself had looked at it for so long that she had started to hate it and no one else had ever figured out she was the one who drew it.

She idly traced the outline of the mermaid with her fingertips, getting lost in her thoughts when she heard her door creek open. She snapped her head to the side to see Odette stepping in quietly and shutting the door behind her.

" _ **Do you need something?"**_ Fleur raised an eyebrow.

" _ **I just wanted to talk to you."**_ Odette smiled nervously. " _ **I wanted to see how you're doing."**_

Fleur eyed the red-head suspiciously. " _ **I'm fine."**_

" _ **Have you figured out that egg yet?"**_

" _ **No."**_ Fleur sighed as she took a seat at her desk.

" _ **I see . . ."**_ Odette eyed the golden egg sitting on Fleur's dresser, pretending to be far more interested in it than she really was. " _ **How are things going with Hermione?"**_ She tried to keep her tone neutral and not as prying as she knew it would come off as, but she knew Fleur was bottling something up and she wanted to help.

" _ **Why?"**_ Fleur's eyes narrowed at her friend who was doing a horrible job at trying to sound disinterested.

" _ **Just curious."**_ Odette shrugged.

" _ **Right."**_

" _ **Veronique came to my room last night . . ."**_ Odette chewed on her lower lip and turned to see Fleur stiffen in her seat. " _ **She said she caught you two snogging."**_

" _ **Veronique is a liar."**_ Fleur grumbled. " _ **You should know better than to believe her."**_

" _ **Fleur . . ."**_ Odette sighed as she went to kneel in front of her alpha who was clearly guarded. " _ **You can tell me if there's something going on. I won't tell Veronique. I know how she can be."**_

Fleur scoffed. _**"I have no idea what you're talking about."**_

Odette crinkled her brow as she looked up at Fleur looking off to the side, her jaw set firmly in place, and her eyes hard and then it hit Odette like a ton of bricks; something she had been very suspicious of, but Fleur's actions just confirmed it. " _ **You really do like her. Like . . . a lot."**_

" _ **Don't be absurd Odette."**_

Odette just smiled as she saw the obvious signs that Fleur was simply protecting herself; she had been right all along. " _ **I knew it."**_

" _ **You have no idea what you're talking about."**_ Fleur's sharp gaze was turned to the red-head, meant to pierce her, but it had the opposite effect and Odette's smile grew.

Odette jumped up and wrapped Fleur in a tight hug. " _ **Oh, Fleur I'm so happy! I think Hermione is perfect for you!"**_

" _ **Keep your voice down."**_ Fleur growled as she disentangled herself from her overly excited friend. " _ **And I never said I like her."**_

" _ **You didn't have to."**_ Odette beamed as she rocked back and forth on her heels. " _ **It has been so obvious."**_

Fleur blushed as she looked down. _**"It's not obvious."**_

" _ **Well, I for one think this is great."**_

" _ **It's terrifying."**_ Fleur mumbled and Odette had to do a double take when she heard how fragile her usually strong and unwavering alpha sounded.

" _ **Terrifying?"**_ Odette raised an eyebrow. " _ **Hermione Granger is a very sweet, intelligent, and beautiful girl. What could be so terrifying about liking her?"**_

" _ **It's not her, it's . . ."**_ Fleur shook her head, closing her mouth before she revealed too much. " _ **It's nothing. Never mind."**_

Odette's eyes grew wide once more when a new reality dawned on her. " _ **You're falling for her."**_

" _ **I'm not."**_ Fleur seemed to bristle at the comment. " _ **You couldn't be more wrong."**_

" _ **You are."**_

Fleur just rolled her eyes and moved past the red-head who was pushing things a lot harder than she usually did. " _ **That would be too cliché."**_

Odette just eyed her friend trying to seem busy with something else, but she could tell by the way Fleur fumbled with her drawers that she hit the mark. " _ **If you say so."**_ Odette smiled knowingly. " _ **Would you want to go for a little walk? I could use some fresh air."**_

Fleur looked at her friend suspiciously once more, but when she saw there was no threat or ulterior motive she nodded her head and got ready.

/

As Fleur and Odette walked the grounds of Hogwarts she had to hide her irritation at how chipper her friend seemed to be. She knew Odette thought she was right and it was driving her mad; she was getting sick of people telling her how she felt. Things were already confusing enough as it is without other people constantly pestering her about Hermione.

When they reached the quidditch pitch she couldn't help but see a twinkle in Odette's bright blue eyes, looking up at the stands. Fleur followed her line of sight and saw the object of her constant state of confusion sitting in the stands with a book in her lap as usual. She couldn't help the smile that slid across her face; of course Hermione would be outside reading while her friends were playing quidditch.

"'Ermione!" Odette yelled out to get her attention before Fleur could try to go on her own path.

Hermione looked up from her text, looking around completely confused for a moment until her eyes landed on the pair. "Hey guys!" Hermione smiled back at Odette and then blushed slightly when her eyes landed on Fleur looking at her with that same intense gaze as if she was trying to solve a puzzle.

"Let's go 'ang out with 'ermione for a bit." Odette whispered to Fleur who in turn glared at her hopeful look.

"And you say I'm incorrigible."

"I 'ave no idea what you are talking about." Odette smiled innocently at Fleur before she headed up the stairs to Hermione and Fleur reluctantly followed.

Hermione closed her book when the two approached her. "What brings you two to the quidditch pitch?"

"We were just walking ze grounds to get some fresh air." Odette glanced over to her quiet alpha.

"Ah, I see." Hermione nodded her head. "Fleur's room can get kind of stuffy."

Fleur narrowed her eyes at the grinning Gryffindor while Odette giggled behind her hand. "My room ees not stuffy Mademoiselle Granger."

Hermione just shrugged and mocked her French accent. "Eef you say so."

Fleur huffed and crossed her arms; she tried to hide the small smile tugging at her lips at Hermione's playful banter, but failed horribly. "I do."

"Oi!" Ginny's voice cut through from high above as she zoomed down to the trio. "Did you guys come to play a little quidditch?" Ginny grinned over at Fleur and Odette; they were both surprised to see the red-head be so pleasant.

"Non, not really." Fleur spoke carefully.

Harry flew down next to Ginny, looking from Hermione to Fleur which did not go unnoticed by Ginny. "We're short a couple people. Do you guys want to join?"

Odette turned to Fleur with hope gleaming in her eyes. "Can we?"

Fleur eyed her excited friend for a moment and upon seeing the puppy dog eyes she gave her there was no way she could let her down. "Fine. One match."

"Yes!" Ron crowed next to Harry. "I call Fleur!"

"You can't just call Fleur Ron!" Ginny huffed, glaring at her brother. "And if you get Fleur, I get Odette." Ginny stuck her tongue out childishly at her sibling.

Hermione and Harry simultaneously rolled their eyes at the Weasley's banter while Fleur and Odette stood there with amused smiles on their faces. "Zat ees fine wiz me." Fleur spoke easily making a grin nearly split Ron's face in two.

Ron proceeded to stick his tongue back out at his sister who crossed her arms. "You're done for."

"Yeah, right." Ginny scoffed.

"Go ahead and grab a broom. We'll meet you up there." Harry smiled at the two girls, attempting to break up the sibling rivalry and flew away with Ron and Ginny following suit, bickering the whole way back.

Fleur and Odette went to go grab their brooms, but Hermione spoke up before they could get too far. "Hey Fleur." Fleur paused in her steps, looking back at the brunette. "Do you mind hanging back for a minute?"

"Sure." Fleur shrugged, trying to ignore the smile that spread on Odette's face.

"I will meet you up zere." Odette winked at Fleur before she flew off.

"Did you need somezing?" Fleur asked as she approached Hermione once more who was fiddling with her book.

"I um . . . forgot to ask yesterday." Hermione bit her lower lip as she looked back up at the blonde. "I think I left my cardigan in your room from that night. Did you know where it is?"

"No idea." Fleur shrugged, trying to hide her smile.

"Fleur Delacour!" Hermione huffed. "You know damn well where my cardigan is and I would like it back."

Fleur held her hand to her chest in mock pain. "You wound me Mademoiselle Granger. Do you zink I am 'olding eet 'ostage?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes at the clearly amused veela. "That is exactly what I think you're doing."

"What are you going to give me for eet?" Fleur raised an eyebrow, her grin spreading as she crossed her arms.

"What do you want?" Hermione played along, leaning back with her elbows on the bleachers behind her.

Fleur looked over her shoulder to make sure no one was too close to them before she stepped forward, her eyes starting to subtly glow. "You know what I want." She spoke in a soft sultry tone, sending shivers down Hermione's spine, making her blush.

"Oi!" Ginny yelled once more. "What's the hold-up Delacour? Scared we're gonna wreck you?"

"Non." Fleur smiled as she turned to the red-head zooming back in. "I was just informing Mademoiselle Granger zat eef she 'ears 'eads up eet means she should duck."

"Oh, sod off." Hermione grumbled as Ginny burst out laughing.

Harry appeared next to Ginny with a grin. "Well I'm sure Hermione will be fine with you here to catch her right?"

Ginny couldn't help but notice how both girls blushed at Harry's statement and how Fleur seemed a little off when she replied "Oui."

"Come on!" Ron whined as she flew up next to his friends. "Are we going to play quidditch or gab away all day?"

"Calm down Ron." Ginny rolled her eyes as Fleur grabbed her broom and headed up to play with the Gryffindors.

/

"Watch out for Gin." Ron spoke quietly next to Fleur as they were getting ready to start the match. "She's a tricky one."

Fleur eyed the boy next to her then glanced back to Ginny who sat upon her broom with a confident gleam in her eye. "She shouldn't be a problem."

"I like the confidence." Ron grinned.

"Hey! Weasley!"

Ron let out an irritated groan when the goalie from the other team, Cormac McLaggen, came zooming up to the pair. Fleur eyed the blonde haired boy with dark brown eyes warily; he was handsome to say the least but he gave off an irritatingly conceited air and that was saying a lot if Fleur was thinking that.

Ron sighed, giving the boy the same look Fleur was. "What is it Cormac?"

"You're friends with Granger right?" He looked down at the brunette sitting in the stands and a sly smile crossed his face that made Fleur bristle.

Fleur looked down to see Hermione looking at the trio questioningly while Ron spoke. "Yeah. Why?"

"Do you think you could introduce us? Maybe put in a good word for me?" Cormac turned his attention back to Ron who was trying not to roll his eyes. "I know you dated and all, but you know, you can't blame a bloke for trying. I wouldn't mind getting on a first name basis with her if you know what I mean." He nudged Ron with a shit eating grin that made Fleur want to punch him in the face.

"Yeah, sure." Ron replied sarcastically, but the blonde boy seemed too stupid to pick up on it.

"Thanks mate." Cormac spoke without looking at Ron, his predatory gaze was set on the girl in the stands. He smiled and waved at Hermione to which Hermione waved back clearly confused as to why Cormac McLaggen was waving at her.

"What a tool." Ron scoffed as Cormac flew into position, keeping an eye on the girl that had clearly caught his interest.

"I couldn't 'ave said eet better myself." Fleur grumbled, glaring at the cocky Gryffindor at the goal post; she had such a tight grip on her broom her knuckles were turning white. She turned her bright blue eyes to Hermione once more who gave her a thumbs up as a way of encouragement and she felt herself relax just a little. '' _e ees going to regret ever laying eyes on 'Ermione Granger.'_

The whistle blew, pulling Fleur from her dark thoughts and she went about the task at hand, grabbing the quaffle before Ginny could get her hands on it and zoomed to the goal post as fast as she could, ducking when a bludger came to knock her off of her broom.

When she got to the goalpost she paused, confusing everyone around her, and ignoring her teammates shouting for her to shoot.

Cormac squeezed the handle of his broom tighter, eyeing the veela with great anticipation, what was she waiting for? He didn't have to wonder much longer, because the second another bludger was hit in her direction she maneuvered out of the way almost effortlessly and it went zooming straight for him. His dark orbs widened and he quickly zoomed out of the way, barely avoiding a direct hit to the face. When he looked back Fleur just smiled innocently at him as she carelessly tossed the quaffle into the goal, making her team hoot and holler.

Hermione watched from the stands, an amused smile gracing her features when she saw Fleur's tactics. It would seem Cormac had said something to upset Fleur, because Hermione couldn't see Fleur pulling a move like that unless the goalie had said something to her.

When she saw the quaffle released once more she almost laughed at the huff Ginny gave out when Fleur got there before her. The red head was hot on her tail, trying to get the quaffle, but Fleur outmaneuvered her at every step and when she got to the goal post and threw the quaffle she saw Cormac about to catch it. She knew she shouldn't interfere, but she couldn't help but cover her mouth and whisper "Confundus."

Cormac's broom suddenly shifted to the side and the shot went in causing Fleur's team to erupt in cheers again while Cormac looked down at his broom clearly confused as to what happened.

Fleur looked over her shoulder to see Hermione grinning and couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face at seeing Hermione trying to contain her laughter. Fleur raised an eyebrow at the giggling Gryffindor to which Hermione just shrugged. ' _You are always full of surprises 'Ermione Granger.'_

"Hey, keep your head in the game Delacour." Harry spoke with an amused smile as he zoomed up next to the distracted veela.

"Yeah, I want to beat you fair and square." Ginny teased, surprising both Harry and Fleur. It was obvious Fleur was eyeing the bookworm who had seemed to become Fleur's personal cheerleader, but Ginny wasn't scolding the blonde, she actually seemed okay with everything.

Fleur responded by rolling her eyes and shooting Hermione one last smile before she sped off.

Hermione leaned back in the stands, her smile still firmly in face as she watched the two teams fight for dominance when a voice broke her from her reverie.

"It would seem we 'ave somezing een common."

Hermione tore her gaze from Fleur to see that girl Veronique smirking as she headed over to sit next to her. ' _What the bloody hell is she talking about?'_

Veronique looked up to Fleur for a moment before she sat down next to the confused Gryffindor. "We are boz muggle born and obviously dislike flying."

"I wouldn't say I don't like flying, I think flying doesn't like me." Hermione sat up, trying to be pleasant with Fleur's friend.

Veronique just laughed as she recalled Hermione's last encounter with flying. "I zink zat ees a fair statement."

Hermione just hummed in response as she turned her attention back to the game; she couldn't stop her gaze from following Fleur and how graceful she was even on a broom.

"So, 'ow ees eet being a muggle born and attending 'Ogwarts? Are zere many ozer muggle borns such as yourself?" Veronique continued on, obviously trying to make conversation.

"It's fine." Hermione shrugged. "There used to be some bigots, but ever since the fall of Voldemort they've kept their traps shut. How is it being a muggle born at Beuxbatons?"

"Well zere were never any bigots, but zere are so many pure bloodlines and students wiz magical creature blood zat I don't really 'ave anyone to talk to about muggle zings wiz." Veronique sighed. "Eet's nice to chat wiz someone who understands."

"Understand what?" Hermione asked absentmindedly as she continued watching the veela.

"'Ow 'ard eet can be adjusting to ze magical world. Eet ees sometimes 'ard to relate wiz ozer people."

Hermione's gaze flickered to Veronique. "I suppose."

"So tell me, what do your parents do?" Veronique put on her most charming smile when Fleur glanced over at the pair and almost toppled over when it clicked that Veronique was chatting Hermione up. She gritted her teeth and glared down at the dark-haired witch that moved in a little too close for her liking.

"My parents are dentists." Hermione smiled over at Veronique, giving the Beuxbatons student her full attention as she turned away from the quidditch game. "What about your parents?"

"My fazer ees a lawyer and my mozer ees een politics."

"Interesting." Hermione's eyes flickered back to the quidditch pitch to watch Fleur who was playing a little more aggressively than she was before.

"She's beautiful eesn't she?"

Hermione's cheeks heated up at the question and she looked back to see those dark green eyes filled with mischief. "Who is?"

"You don't 'ave to play dumb wiz me. Eet ees fine." Veronique waved off Hermione's bashfulness. "Everyone stares at Fleur."

"I wasn't-"

"I just always zought you would be more attracted to someone wiz per'aps a darker demeanor." Veronique smirked as she moved in closer to the point their knees were touching.

"I see you 'ave not lost your touch Veronique." Gabrielle's voice suddenly cut through, making Veronique scowl. "Don't you 'ave a village to burn or somezing?"

"And I see your timing ees impeccable as always Gabrielle." Veronique grumbled as she stood up, not wanting to linger with Fleur's little sister who liked to take jabs at her any chance she got. "I must be going 'Ermione, but eet was very nice chatting wiz you." Veronique shot Hermione a wink, making the golden girl cringe, before she sauntered off.

"Thanks for that . . ." Hermione mumbled when Gabrielle took the seat that Veronique previously occupied.

"You should be more careful." Gabrielle scolded the brunette. "Veronique ees a viper and my sister ees not much better."

"Fleur?" Hermione frowned and looked back up to the champion who seemed to pause when she saw her sister now sitting next to Hermione.

' _Ees zis pester 'Ermione Granger day?'_ Fleur inwardly groaned at her horrible luck.

Hermione looked back to Gabrielle. "She is nothing like Veronique, at least from what I've seen."

"Zen you 'ave not seen much." Gabrielle replied nonchalantly as she leaned back to watch the game.

Hermione eyed the mini version of Fleur for a moment, she was itching to ask her a question and before she could stop herself she blurted it out. "Why do you hate Fleur so much?"

Gabrielle looked surprised for a moment, but quickly covered it up. "I don't 'ate 'er."

"It sure seems like it." Hermione mumbled softly.

Gabrielle sighed and turned her sharp gaze back to the Gryffindor. "Do you 'ave siblings 'Ermione?"

"No."

"Zen I do not expect you to understand. Zings are complicated."

"Well if you're so insistent that it's entirely too complicated to explain, then why can't you believe that maybe she isn't as bad you think she is?" Hermione shot back; she knew that she was definitely pushing things, but she couldn't stand for Fleur to be talked about like that.

Gabrielle was silent for a moment as she mulled over what Hermione said; she made a hell of an argument and it was obvious it was fueled by her feelings for her sister. "You like 'er don't you?"

"That doesn't matter." Hermione blushed while Gabrielle eyed her. "I just don't understand why you shun her when she could probably use your support."

Gabrielle furrowed her brows, completely surprised by Hermione's words. "What do you mean by zat?"

"You know . . . with her art . . ." Hermione seemed unsure of her words under Gabrielle's scrutinizing gaze. "And stuff . . ."

"Interesting." Gabrielle mumbled; she was shocked to say the least to see how much Hermione cared. "You are too nice."

"I wouldn't say that's my problem." Hermione rolled her eyes and Gabrielle smiled at her response.

"Per'aps I didn't 'ave to interefer wiz Veronique zen." Gabrielle replied teasingly.

"No, no, no." Hermione's eyes widened. "You were a life saver; I didn't know how to get rid of her."

"'Oly water usually 'elps." Gabrielle spoke simply making Hermione laugh.

"So she's the antichrist then?"

Gabrielle shrugged. "Somezing like zat." She looked back up to see her sister glaring daggers at her, but it wasn't the usual glare she received, it was obviously a jealous one. Gabrielle just rolled her eyes in response; as if she was that sleazy. "I better get going before Fleur sets me on fire wiz zat smoldering gaze of 'ers."

Hermione furrowed her brow in confusion, looking up to Fleur who quickly looked away when Hermione caught her staring. Fleur zoomed around, jumping off her broom over another player, and then landing back on it in time to catch the quaffle tossed to her, looking back to Hermione with a confident gleam once she scored again. Hermione just shook her head and smiled before she turned her attention back to Gabrielle. "Has she always been such a cocky git?"

Gabrielle just laughed as she stood up. "Oui. She broke many bones 'as a child trying to show off for our parents."

"Of course." Hermione smiled a bit, but the smile almost fell from her face when she really thought about what Gabrielle just said. Even when Fleur was little she was trying to please her parents and searched for their approval; she must be harboring more pain that she even dared to show at her parents blatant rejection of her passion.

"I really must be going." Gabrielle's voice cut through Hermione's thoughts and started to leave.

"Hey, Gabrielle." Gabrielle paused in her steps when Hermione's voice rang out. "I know it's not my place, but . . ." Hermione chewed on her lower lip as she steeled her nerves to say what she needed to. "Maybe you should go a little easy on Fleur. She doesn't show it, but I think she's had a rough go of things."

Gabrielle raised an eyebrow at Hermione's request and Hermione couldn't help but notice how much she looked like Fleur in that moment. "You are an odd one indeed 'Ermione Granger."

"So that's a yes?" Hermione pushed, making Gabrielle smile.

"I like you." Gabrielle laughed as she walked off, making Hermione even more confused.

"That wasn't really an answer." Hermione grumbled as she looked back up at the pitch where everyone seemed to be finishing up, hovering on their broomsticks, and Fleur's eyes were back on her; they never seemed to leave her for too long.

"You were bloody brilliant." Harry smiled over at Fleur who was obviously distracted; what in the world could Hermione and Gabrielle be talking about to make her little sister laugh and smile like that? "Fleur?" Harry waved his hand in front of Fleur's face, making the veela jump a bit.

"What ees eet?"

"Seems you were pretty distracted out there." Ginny smirked over at the blonde who was trying to appear aloof.

"It didn't stop her from scoring against you guys left and right." Ron jumped in with a matching smirk that made Ginny's fall.

"Sod off." Ginny groaned. "Fleur is unnaturally good at this. I mean, really, is there anything you're not good at?"

Fleur shrugged and smiled cockily in response. "Nope."

"Cocky git." Ginny mumbled while Harry and Ron burst out laughing.

"Zat ees not true." Odette jumped in with a smile, making Fleur shoot daggers at her. "Fleur ees not especially good at cooking. She almost set ze dorm on fire when she tried to simply make toast."

"Toast?" Harry raised an eyebrow, trying to hide his amused smile.

"Een my defense I 'ad 'ad a few too many zat night." Fleur mumbled while the rest of the group burst out into a fit of laughter.

"You'll hardly make a suitable wife for Hermione if you can't even cook." Ginny shook her head with a grin, making Fleur freeze. "Oh, calm down Delacour, you look like you've seen a ghost. It's not like you two have been very good at hiding whatever it is you are doing."

"I 'ave no idea what you are talking about Mademoiselle Weasley." Fleur put her nose up in the air, but it just goaded Ginny and the rest of the group on.

"Don't play dumb." Ginny scoffed. "I'm totally fine with it now seeing as you gave Malfoy a good bashing, but I must warn you . . ." Ginny suddenly looked serious. "If you break her heart, I'll have to break your legs."

"I-" Fleur started to defend herself, but was luckily saved by Harry Potter.

"Oh, come off it Gin." Harry rolled his eyes and Ginny went back to grinning. "You wouldn't have figured anything out if it wasn't for me."

"Figured what out?" Ron tilted his head to the side and the rest of the group looked at him with amused smiles.

"Nothing." Harry shook his head and Ron shrugged it off before he flew down to the ground and Ginny followed suit. "Fleur." Harry called out before Fleur could fly off, effectively catching the blonde's attention. His eyes flickered down to his friend watching them intently then back to the veela looking at him curiously. "All joking aside . . . Hermione is probably the best out of all of us. I love her like a sister and she's got some . . . well some baggage I suppose." Harry rubbed the back of his neck, he really still felt like he was horrible at these things. "Just . . . be careful with her yeah? She means a lot to all of us."

Fleur looked back to Hermione, her brow furrowed as his words echoed in her head. Hermione was really special to everyone around her and she could see why; Hermione was so caring and considerate in areas other people weren't. For a brief moment she felt a pang of regret for the bet she had made without much thought at the beginning of the year and for perhaps pushing the brilliant witch a little too far the night before even though she really hadn't meant to. Normally, she wouldn't feel these feelings washing through her and it was confusing her even more, but then Hermione smiled at her and she all but melted on the spot before she returned the smile in kind and turned back to Harry. There was no point in playing dumb at this point and for some reason she felt a tug at her heart when she saw how much Hermione's friends really cared about her. "I will."

"I'm not implying that you guys have anything serious going on or anything. I guess I'm just playing the role of the over protective brother and-"

"'Arry, you do not 'ave to explain. Eet ees fine and I understand." Fleur smiled reassuring at Harry, making the dark-haired boy let out a sigh of relief.

"Merlin, I'm bloody bad at these things." Her grinned sheepishly back at the veela.

"I zink you did a great job." Fleur joked. "I feel zoroughly warned."

"Good." Harry sat up a bit straighter, trying to give off an air of importance that just made the other champion laugh as they flew down to join everyone putting their brooms away.

"Who won?" Hermione asked with a grin as she walked up to the group of students.

"We did." Ron puffed out his chest, pointing his thumb to it. "Cormac couldn't stop a quaffle to save his life." The red-head smirked when he saw the blonde glower at him; he obviously was not going to put in a good word.

"Fleur carried your whole team." Ginny grumbled as she put her broom away.

"I can never beat 'er." Odette sighed next to Ginny.

"You're just full of surprises eh?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at Fleur who just shrugged in response, unable to hold back her proud smile.

"We're going to the Three Broomsticks." Harry jumped in and looked over to Odette and Fleur. "Do you guys want to come with?"

"Oui, just let me get changed out of zese sweaty clothes." Fleur scrunched up her nose as she looked down at her sweaty attire.

"Maybe you guys should do the same." Hermione eyed her friends distastefully.

"What's that Mione?" Ginny held her hand to her ear. "You want me to hug you?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes, taking a step back. "Don't you dare."

"Okay, if you insist." Ginny sighed and suddenly lunged at Hermione, wrapping her in a tight hug while Hermione whined.

"Get off Ginny!" Hermione cried out. "You're so bloody gross!"

Fleur just watched with an amused smile before she spoke up. "I will see you all zere shortly. Per'aps you should change too 'Ermione."

Hermione just shot the veela a glare in response as she walked off with Odette.

/

An hour later Hermione sat at the three broomsticks in a fresh outfit sipping on a butterbeer courtesy of Ginerva Weasley for getting her covered in her sweat.

"So you and Fleur eh?" Ginny looked over to Hermione, making the brunette pale. Harry tried to shoot Ginny a warning look, but it was completely waved off by the chaser.

"What do you mean me and Fleur?" Hermione tried to act casual, but it seemed she was anything but.

"I think what Ginny meant is you and Fleur are getting along pretty well now eh?" Harry quickly jumped in, he knew how sensitive the subject was by how avidly Hermione avoided it, and he did not want his friend to shrink in on herself.

"No I-" Ginny was promptly cut off by a kick to her shin under the table by the boy who lived. "Yeah, that's totally what I meant." Ginny grumbled.

"I suppose we get along alright." Hermione shrugged.

Ron's ears perked and he lifted his head from his own beverage as he looked at Hermione hopefully. "You think you could put in a good word for me?"

Hermione just rolled her eyes and smiled. "Yeah Ron. I'll put in a good word." The brunette smirked as she took a sip of her drink, but almost spit it out when she saw Fleur walk in with Odette. The blonde had the audacity to flaunt her gray and red cardigan in front of her by wearing it. ' _The bloody nerve of that girl!'_

"Bonjour." Fleur smiled as she took a seat next to Hermione, making the bookworm scoot over with a scowl that did not go unnoticed by her friends.

"We already got the first round." Ron spoke dreamily as he pushed Fleur and Odette their drinks.

"Merci Monsieur Weasley." Fleur spoke as she took a sip of her butterbeer, trying to hide her smirk at seeing Hermione's reaction.

"I love that cardigan Fleur." Ginny smirked when she saw Hermione's scowl; the boys may not have noticed that that was Hermione's cardigan, but she sure did. "Where did you get it?"

Hermione visibly paled once more as Fleur placed down her drink. "Just somezing I 'ad laying around my stuffy room. I razer like eet myself." Fleur turned to Hermione with an amused twinkle in those bright blue orbs. "What do you zink 'Ermione?"

"It's nice." Hermione mumbled into her own beverage and Ginny had to refrain from laughing. It was great to see someone else terrorize Hermione for once; perhaps Fleur Delacour really wasn't that bad.

"I think it looks bloody brilliant on you." Ron put on his most charming smile which just earned him a hearty laugh from Ginny soon followed by Hermione. "What?" He looked between the girls clearly confused.

"You wouldn't understand if I told you." Ginny smirked.

Fleur just sat with her friend watching her closely with a smile, which she tried to ignore. She couldn't deny that she liked being in the presence of the golden trio and company. It was nice to be around friends that were well . . . friendly and laughed at each other good naturedly instead of the more vindictive people she usually hung around and Hermione's reaction to her wearing her cardigan was the cherry on top. When she saw it sitting in her dresser she couldn't help but throw it on just so she could dangle it in front of the brunette's face.

"So, tell us about yourself Fleur." Ginny leaned forward, breaking the champion from her reverie.

Fleur couldn't help but feel a little uneasy at the scrutinizing gaze she was under; it was like meeting Hermione's parents, but it was worse, because her friends seemed very protective of the golden girl. "Zere ees not much to tell."

"She ees being elusive as always." Odette smirked, making Fleur glare at her. "She ees ze 'eiress to ze Delacour clan, top student at Beuxbatons, and unreasonably good at everyzing . . . except cooking of course."

"So you are bad at something." Hermione smirked and Fleur glared at her friend; she just loved telling that story.

"Apparently Fleur here set the dorms on fire when she tried to make toast." Harry jumped in with a grin.

Hermione tilted her head to the side, an amused twinkle in her eyes. "Too used to the pampered life to bother learning how to cook like the rest of us peasants?"

"Eet ees not zat I didn't try." Fleur grumbled. "Eet 'as always been lost on me."

"Well good thing Hermione is a great cook." Ginny piped up, making Hermione look at her suspiciously.

"Why would that matter?" Ron looked between everyone who just shook their heads at his obliviousness.

"So, I heard you two dated." Odette changed the subject for Fleur, albeit it wasn't a great subject change, because it made both Hermione and Ron grimace.

"Briefly." They grumbled at the same time making Harry and Ginny laugh.

A flicker of jealousy appeared in Fleur's sapphire orbs, but it was gone almost as soon as it arrived. Ginny, however, had a very sharp eye and it did not go unnoticed by the chaser. "They didn't get too far though. Ron came in his pants before they could do anything."

"Don't be so crass Ginny!" Hermione hissed at the red-head and Fleur had to bite her tongue; apparently they had gotten far enough.

"I really wish you would stop telling people that." Ron growled over at his clearly amused sister. "You know that never happened."

"We kissed maybe three times." Hermione rolled her eyes. "It was odd to say the least."

"Gee, thanks Mione." Ron laughed and Hermione just smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

Fleur felt herself visibly relax at the affirmation that they didn't get too far; she didn't know why that would matter anyways, but it did for some reason. "Zat ees good." Fleur said with a sigh, earning her an amused smile from everyone except Ron.

"Why is that good?" He frowned.

Ginny just laughed into her butterbeer. "You really are hopeless."

Fleur smiled at the siblings despite her feeling a little self-conscience for her slip up. She felt another painful tug at her heart upon seeing how the two siblings interacted with each other, making her miss her own friendly banter with her little sister. A part of her yearned to reach out to her sibling and make things right, but the stubborn part kept her at bay.

Hermione noticed the forlorn look on Fleur's face and felt her heart sink a little for the blonde; it was obvious she was missing her sister so she subtly brought her hand under the table and squeezed Fleur's own soft hand in what she hoped was a reassuring way.

Fleur turned to look at Hermione questioningly and her heart all but melted on the spot when Hermione smiled lopsidedly at her and turned her attention back to her friends with a slight blush she tried to hide behind her butterbeer. It seemed Hermione became a little self-conscious and went to pull her hand away, but Fleur intertwined their fingers before she could escape.

Odette noticed the interaction with a smile, feeling the content and happy waves coming off of her alpha. After whatever Hermione did Fleur was positively beaming for the rest of their stay at the pub.

/

Later that night Fleur found herself roaming the halls of Hogwarts, idly playing with a piece of paper in her hand, still sporting Hermione's gray and red cardigan, nervously rocking back and forth on her heels. She vaguely remembered Hermione mentioning she had prefect duties tonight and she hoped to catch the girl alone and hopefully not some other prefect. She had things she wanted to say to Hermione, especially after her chat with Harry and Ginny; it had been weighing unusually heavy on her mind. She wouldn't usually bother with something that seemed so inconsequential, but it felt important to her for some reason.

"Do you have a pass to be out this late?" Hermione smirked when she came upon the blonde seemingly lost in her own world.

Fleur turned around with her own sly grin. "Non, but I am snogging a prefect so I figured I could get away with eet."

Hermione just rolled her eyes with a smile. "What are you doing here Fleur? You know I'm on duty."

"Could we talk someone more private?" Fleur chewed on her lower lip and Hermione eyed her suspiciously. "Just talk 'Ermione. I am not 'ere to ambush you alzough zat does sound appealing."

"Fine, but I'm on to you." Hermione mumbled as she lead them into an empty classroom. "So what's up?"

"I wanted to give zis to you." Fleur held out a thin piece of paper that slowly blossomed into a rose. "To apologize for zings maybe getting a little out of 'and een my bedroom." Fleur blushed as she held out said flower she took an hour making, shifting her gaze to the side. "I did not mean to push you. My body 'as a mind of eets own sometimes."

"Oh." Hermione was entirely surprised by Fleur's actions, her own cheeks heating up when she was presented with the carefully crafted flower. "It's fine. I didn't feel like you were pushing me." Hermione smiled lightly as she took the flower outstretched to her. "And you did technically keep your hands to yourself." Hermione laughed to ease the tension, drawing Fleur's attention.

"I did." Fleur grinned, but it faltered for a moment. "I also wanted to apologize for Veronique, I know she can be a bit trying sometimes. She did not bozer you too much last night or at ze quidditch pitch did she?"

"Bother me?" Hermione's eyes shifted to the side for a moment, recalling how uncomfortable the other girl had made her feel, but she didn't feel it was worth worrying Fleur about.

"I can talk to 'er eef she did." Fleur continued on when she saw Hermione hesitate. "I 'ave no problem doing zat."

"No, no." Hermione waved her hands dismissively, but was thoroughly touched that Fleur cared so much; once again the veela surprised her. She hadn't put much thought into her snog session with the blonde except for the occasional daydream and thought even less about the Veronique girl. She was a bit of a nuisance, but it was nothing she couldn't handle. "It's totally fine, but thank you for the concern." Hermione smiled warmly at the clearly worried champion and took note of Fleur still sporting one of her favorite cardigans; the sight tugged at her heart for reasons she still wasn't sure she wanted to confront. "I see you're still wearing my cardigan."

"I zink eet looks better on me non?" Fleur spoke with a smirk as she tugged on the sides of it, looking down at the clothing in appreciation.

"Everything looks better on you." Hermione scoffed making Fleur laugh.

"You are too kind Mademoiselle Granger." Fleur grinned as she took a step closer to Hermione. "You can 'ave eet back eef you would like." Fleur started to slowly take it off, defaulting to her usual sex appeal when she exposed herself too much, but Hermione halted her movement.

"No, you can . . ." Hermione chewed on her lower lip, eyeing a confused Fleur up and down before she continued. "You can keep it."

"I can't-"

"Please." Hermione continued on. "I want you to have it."

Fleur looked back at the cardigan, her cheeks heating up once more. "Oh, but it seemed you really wanted eet back."

"You were right." Hermione shrugged with a small smile. "It looks better on you."

"Eef you insist." Fleur smiled and was surprised when Hermione grabbed her by the cardigan and pulled her into another earth shattering kiss. She couldn't bring herself to even try to stop from melting into the kiss and pressing Hermione against a nearby desk; she really did not have the intention to snog Hermione tonight, but she was not one to deny the brunette anything these days.

Fleur rested her hands on either side of the desk, effectively trapping Hermione there as she ran her tongue over her lower lip. She deepened the kiss, slipping her tongue into the prefect's mouth, and almost moaned when Hermione arched her body into her. She could feel her temperature rapidly rising and was finding it hard to stick to their agreement, but when Hermione bit down on her lower lip all bets were off.

She gripped Hermione beneath her thighs and lifted her onto the desk, pressing herself further into the young prodigy who was showing no signs of protest. Actually, it was quite the opposite. Hermione 's hands were the ones running up and down her back, gripping the clothing tightly as she tried to pull Fleur closer even though the task was entirely impossible at this point and Fleur responded by letting out a soft moan as she tangled her hands in Hermione's soft brown curls.

Fleur wanted to take the bookworm right there on the desk, her veela was even demanding she do so, but she remembered her promise and kept her hands in Hermione's hair to keep them occupied if only for the time being.

"Fleur." Hermione sighed against her lips before she pulled away and Fleur tried to follow. "I really must be getting back to patrolling." Hermione smiled when Fleur's eyes opened to reveal those glowing orbs she was always so enraptured by glossed over.

Fleur let out a sigh and rested her forehead against Hermione's shoulder, making the Gryffindor laugh. "You drive me crazy 'Ermione Granger."

"And I'm sure you wouldn't have it any other way." Hermione replied cheekily, giving Fleur a quick kiss on the side of her head before she pushed her back, and she jumped off the desk to make her exit. She paused in the doorway, looking over her shoulder with a smile that made Fleur do the same despite her slight disappointment by how short their snog session was. "Merci for the flower."

Then Hermione Granger swept out of the classroom leaving a panting veela in her wake, smiling dreamily. "What are you doing to me 'Ermione Granger?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aweee, some good wholesome fluffiness. I had so much fun writing Fleur's first real interaction with Harry and Hermione's other friends and then Hermione interacting with Fleur's. Their friends are a big part of each of their lives and them hanging out with each other was something that took me a minute to come up with so I hope you guys liked it :)


	16. Walking In My Shoes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in the update. I had a bunch of stuff come up today >.< Now, onto the chapter! The songs that inspired this chapter were Banana Bread by Cavetown, for the flashback To The End by My Chemical Romance helped, and then Walking in my shoes but covered by Crystal Joilena :) This is by far my favorite chapter so I hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it:)

_You're falling further down but I've got you by a thread_   
_I wrap the chord around my arms until my hands start to turn red_   
_But it's not enough, it won't be enough to save you_

_She's so in love with all the things I hate most about myself_   
_I'm so in love with all the sounds she makes when she smiles and well . . ._

Fleur let out a dreamy sigh as she walked to Potions with her textbook held to her chest; it had been a couple days since her last encounter with Hermione and they seldom saw each other except for in passing where a small smile would cross both their features. She was already aching for some more alone time with the Gryffindor, but she knew Hermione had a lot on her plate and she supposed she did as well with the egg. She should be taking the tournament more seriously, but it was almost impossible with the brunette always swimming through her head.

She turned a corner, trying to shake the thoughts from her brain, but as usual Hermione popped up right when she thought she was finally clearing her head. A frown crossed her face when she saw Cormac leaning on his hand on the wall next to Hermione, invading her personal space, obviously thinking he looked smooth as he tried to sweet talk the Gryffindor who couldn't look any less interested.

Fleur scowled as he took a step back when Hermione offered a polite smile and she couldn't refrain from sticking her foot out, making the blonde Gryffindor stumble back onto his butt. His face turned a bright red when it was obvious Hermione was trying to hide her laughter and he looked up to see the Beuxbatons student smiling innocently down at him with her perfect pearly white teeth.

"Are you alright?" Fleur feigned interest in his well-being as she tilted her head to the side.

"I-I'm fine." He grumbled as he stood back up and wiped off his robes. "You did that on bloody purpose." He mumbled under his breath, but Fleur's sharp hearing picked it up right away.

"Per'aps you should be more careful next time and watch where you step." Fleur walked forward, adjusting his tie with a dangerous glint in her arctic eyes that made Cormac gulp uncomfortably. "You never know eef you are stepping on somezing zat belongs to someone else and you wouldn't want zat."

"Yeah, I mean . . . of course not." He was obviously beyond flustered. "I should really get going to class."

"Oui, you should." Fleur smiled as he scurried away and turned back around to see Hermione watching her with a raised eyebrow.

"What was that?" Hermione's mouth twitched into an amused smile; if she didn't know any better she would think Fleur was jealous.

"'E scuffed my shoes." Fleur shrugged.

"Right." Hermione rolled her eyes. "Well we should be getting to class."

Fleur bit her lower lip, looking at the golden girl out of the corner of her eye as they walked down the steps. "Ees 'Arry skipping today?"

Hermione just laughed in response; she knew where Fleur was getting at. "No."

"Do you want to skip?" Fleur raised an eyebrow with a grin spreading across her face.

Hermione scoffed and gave Fleur a disapproving look. "You know damn well I won't skip Fleur."

"Well 'ow about a detour." Fleur nodded her head in the direction of a broom closet and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Hermione let out a sigh and paused in her steps. "Fine."

"Really?" Fleur perked up, her eyes brimming with glee.

"No."

"'Ermione!" Fleur whined as Hermione bit back a laugh and continued on their path. "You are too cruel." Fleur grumbled when they entered the class.

"So I've been told." Hermione smirked as she left Fleur standing in the isle while she took her seat next to Harry who proceeded to shoot the veela a grin.

Fleur responded with her own smile and wave before she took her usual seat and Odette abandoned Veronique, who was eyeing the golden girl, to sit with her alpha.

"Why ze long face?" Odette smiled over at her pouting friend.

Fleur sighed, tearing her eyes from the prefect to look at her friend. "Nozing."

"I see." Odette smiled knowingly, making Fleur narrow her eyes at her.

"Wipe zat smile off of your face." Fleur grumbled, making Odette's smile widen.

Fleur ignored the red-head and pulled out her notebook, mentally preparing herself for another long drawn-out class when Hermione's writing showed up on the paper. 'Stop pouting.'

Fleur huffed and looked up to see Hermione grinning at her over her shoulder. Fleur narrowed her eyes at the clearly amused prodigy in response and quickly scribbled down. 'I am not pouting.'

Fleur heard Hermione's laughter ring out and she couldn't stop the small smile from forming on her full lips. She saw the brunette start writing again and she looked down at her page earnestly. 'Well, if that's the case, then I guess I don't need to make anything up to you.'

Fleur's eyes widened and she hastily responded. 'No, no, no. I was definitely pouting.'

Hermione smirked down at the paper before she turned back to Fleur who had a pleading look in those sapphires that always drew her in. She turned to respond and Fleur anxiously waited, but Snape chose that moment to sweep into the room and Hermione put down her quill making Fleur let out a groan as she slouched back in her seat.

Fleur glared at the professor's back as he quickly wrote down the ingredients that they would need for that days potion while Odette watched her friend with an amused smile. It was so obvious that Fleur had it bad for the golden girl and it was funny to watch Fleur deny left and right, but the second Hermione walked into the room she was putty in the prodigy's hands.

Odette had to stop herself from laughing when Hermione got out of her seat to grab the ingredients and Fleur quickly pushed her own chair out in hot pursuit of the brunette.

Hermione was stretching up to grab a bottle when she felt a hand gently touch her lower back and Fleur's velvety voice whispered in her ear. "So 'ow are you going to make eet up to me?"

Hermione felt a shiver run down her spine when she felt Fleur's breath tickle the skin of her ear and neck and she glanced over at the veela who had a hungry look in her eyes. "I haven't given it much thought." Hermione shrugged and smiled, trying to act nonchalant.

"I 'ave." Fleur practically purred, making Hermione blush.

"Is everything alright Hermioninny?" Viktor's voice suddenly interrupted the pair, making them both jump apart as if they had been burned.

"Oh, everything fine." Hermione's blush intensified as she quickly grabbed the last of what she needed and left a very frustrated veela in her wake.

Viktor watched the bookworm go and Fleur bristled as she calmly grabbed her own supplies as if nothing had happened, ignoring the heated stare Viktor was now giving her instead of Hermione. "You should stay away from her." Viktor practically growled.

"Excusez-moi?" Fleur raised an eyebrow and turned her attention to the seeker with barely veiled contempt.

"Hermioninny . . . you should stay away from her." He repeated himself, trying to keep his tone calm, but it was proving difficult. Odette wasn't the only one to notice Fleur's change in behavior. Viktor may have been very good at hiding his brief glances at the pair, but he saw how Fleur hovered around the prefect, scaring off anyone who would even think to try to talk to Hermione as if she owned her. The sight put his teeth on edge and made his blood boil; he knew there was a reason why he didn't like that veela.

"I 'ave no idea what you are talking about Monsieur Krum." Fleur threw on a fake smile, fighting the scowl that wanted to overtake her features.

"Hermioninny is a nice girl." Viktor continued on, gripping his cauldron tightly. "She does not need the likes of you bothering her."

"I think 'Ermoine ees perfectly capable of deciding who she wants to spend 'er time wiz." Fleur gritted her teeth, narrowing her eyes at the seeker. "And speaking of bozering 'er; eet ees you who ees always pawing at 'er, always 'overing around 'er when she ees clearly not interested."

Viktor felt a pang in his chest at Fleur's words; it was no secret he liked the golden girl and the blonde's statement hit a sensitive spot. "Vat I feel for Hermioninny does not matter." He grumbled. "I am simply looking out for her best interest."

"I'm sure." Fleur spat back.

"I know your kind veela." Viktor narrowed his eyes at the now scowling French witch. "I know vhat you are capable of and you are not to be trusted."

"You know nozing." Fleur quickly grabbed the rest of her supplies and was going to leave, but paused in her steps, looking over her shoulder with a smirk. "And now I zink I am going to pursue 'er even 'arder."

Viktor rolled his eyes. "Vhat does that even mean?"

"You know what eet means." Fleur threw a wink in Viktor's direction that left the Bulgarian fuming before she strolled back to her seat where Odette was watching her with a furrowed brow.

"Ees everyzing okay?"

"Oui." Fleur put on her best smile, trying not to show how much Viktor's words bothered her. "Just 'ad to put somezing back een eets place."

Odette raised a questioning eyebrow while Fleur went to work to try to keep her thoughts from straying; Viktor's words unsettled her more than she cared to admit. Was she really as horrible as everyone made her out to be?

/

Fleur was incredibly distracted the entire class, glancing at Hermione every couple of minutes as Viktor's words ran through her head over and over again. Did he really think he would be a better match for the golden girl? '' _Ow ridiculous.'_ Fleur scoffed to herself as she packed up her things when the class had ended. She tried to push the unwanted thoughts from her head as she quickly strode after Hermione in hopes of getting a moment alone with the prefect, but right when Hermione was in her sight Viktor strode past her and approached the brunette.

Fleur paused in her steps, gritting her teeth when Hermione nodded her head at whatever he asked and stepped to the side with him. She watched the interaction between the two with a tight grip on her book. Viktor had a very intense look on his face as usual as he spoke softly to the brunette whose eyes widened at whatever he had just said to her.

Fleur had to bite her tongue when a smile overcame Hermione's features and she pulled the Bulgarian into a hug that made the seeker blush. Fleur started to storm over to the pair, but a familiar voice pulled her attention from Viktor and Hermione.

"'Ow sweet." Veronique smirked as she watched Viktor and Hermione depart, still deep in conversation. "Viktor 'as a crush." Fleur's only response was a sharp glare in Veronique's direction, spurring her friend on. "Eet looks as eef she might feel ze same."

"Zat ees ridiculous." Fleur scoffed as she breezed down the steps. ' _Zere ees no way zat she would go for a brute like 'im . . . right?'_

Veronique raised an eyebrow as they passed the pair still talking animatedly. "Are you sure about zat?"

Fleur just let out a huff, glaring at Hermione and Viktor before she stormed to her next class, leaving Veronique to watch her leave with a smug look on her face.

/

The next day Fleur was absolutely determined to get some alone time with Hermione; she would be damned if she let that Bulgarian steal Hermione from right under her nose so she took a little extra time that morning making sure her hair and appearance was perfect before heading to the castle.

Her first few classes couldn't go by any slower; she was beyond antsy to pull Hermione into an abandoned classroom or broom closet and kiss those lips that she was familiar with; not Viktor. She had to remind herself that she was the one who now owned Hermione's favorite cardigan, she was the one who made Hermione blush with a simple sentence, she was the one who could steal Hermione's breath with a kiss, NOT VIKTOR. ' _And eet will stay zat way.'_ Fleur thought to herself determinedly as she left her third period class and leaned on the wall, waiting for Hermione to pass like she always did at that time of day.

"Bonjour." Fleur spoke up when Hermione came into her line of vision.

"Oh, hey Fleur." Hermione smiled as she stopped to chat with the blonde. "What's up?"

"I was 'oping I could cash een on you making up to me for ze ozer day." Fleur smiled her most charming smile, but Hermione responded with a simple eye roll.

"You know I have class Fleur."

"Eet will only take a moment of your time." Fleur pushed off the wall, getting a little closer to the brunette.

"I don't know . . ." Hermione trailed off, but her amber eyes flickering down to Fleur's pink full lips pulled into a small knowing smile gave her away.

"Come on." Fleur reached to grab Hermione's hand, but much to her chagrin they were interrupted once more.

"Oi! Look who it is." Ginny smiled as she approached the two girls with Harry and Ron in tow. "What are you two doing in this dark corner of the castle?" Ginny wiggled her eyebrows, making Hermione glare at her.

Hermione crossed her arms defensively. "Discussing an essay for Potions if you must know."

"What essay?" Harry raised an eyebrow and Hermione paled; she forgot they shared that class together.

"Um . . . I meant . . ." Hermione started to ramble nervously and Fleur smiled at how cute it was, but another part of her felt an acute sting. She was not opposed to keeping things private, but it was obvious Ginny and Harry knew what was going on between them so why did they have to play this game? Would she be acting like this if she was seeing Viktor? Most people were trying to flaunt Fleur the second she even showed the slightest bit of interest in them, but not Hermione.

Fleur shook that thought from her mind immediately; she hated that she kept thinking about Viktor's words and his own interactions with Hermione and why did she care so much anyways? Hermione was a conquest, yeah, just a conquest. "Eet was actually an essay for magical creatures." Fleur smiled and Hermione gave her a grateful look for covering for her.

"Oh, I bloody forgot about that." Ron sighed while Harry and Ginny just grinned at Fleur's fast recovery.

"Right, well . . ." Ginny cleared her throat. "Would you and Odette like to join us for some quidditch today after classes? The Durmstrang students invited us and we definitely need another good chaser on our team."

"I zink I-"

"I can't believe what I'm seeing." Malfoy sneered over at the group in the hallway with his two lackeys in tow. "How in the world did you Gryffindorks manage to get Fleur Delacour to hang out with you?" He laughed and made the group bristle immediately.

"Don't you have anything better to do than follow us around?" Ginny rolled her eyes. "Are you jealous of Fleur because we won't hang out with you?"

"Don't flatter yourself Weasel." Malfoy scoffed. "As if I would associate with the likes of you."

"You already do by constantly bothering us." Hermione sighed. "So why don't you just get lost?"

"Oui. I must agree." Fleur finally jumped in with a dangerous smile directed at the blonde boy. "Why don't you get lost?"

Malfoy narrowed his eyes, not liking the fact that the veela could intimidate him so easily, but his eyes flickered to the smug look on Hermione's face and a sneer overtook his. "I would be careful around this lot Delacour . . . especially that one." He pointed at the brunette, making Hermione's face fall. "She's bloody dangerous."

Harry stepped in front of Hermione protectively. "Shut up Malfoy."

"She belongs in Azkaban for what she's done." Malfoy continued on, glaring at Hermione over Harry's shoulder.

The air was thick with tension at Malfoy's words that left Fleur thoroughly perplexed; Hermione? Dangerous? Were they talking about the same girl she knew? She would have hexed him already if she could make heads or tails of what he was going on about, but her curiosity was peaked. She opened her mouth to ask, but a quick shuffling of feet and a blur of brown hair caught her attention as Harry shoved Malfoy.

"You bloody git!" Harry bellowed while Ginny went after Hermione.

It took a moment for Fleur's brain to kick back into action and when it did she strode past Malfoy, knocking the books out of his hands absentmindedly, she would deal with him later, and hurried after the two girls who disappeared into a bathroom nearby.

When Fleur walked in Ginny was standing at the door of a stall she could hear quiet sobs emanating from. "Come on 'Mione . . ." Ginny frowned. "Malfoy is a bloody idiot. You should know by now not to listen to anything that comes out of his mouth."

"'Ermione." Fleur spoke softly and Ginny gave her a sad look before she stepped away from the stall to give the blonde room. "Was ees wrong?"

"It's nothing." Hermione replied from the stall, furiously wiping away her tears.

"Eet does not seem like nozing . . ." Fleur spoke carefully. "Eef you like I could go back and give zat 'orrid boy a snout to match 'is tail.'

Light laughter rang out from the stall making a smile form on Fleur and Ginny's face. "No, that is entirely unnecessary. I can handle him myself."

Fleur chewed on her lower lip for a moment, unsure of how to continue. "Will you come out . . . s'il vous plaît?"

A soft sigh was the only thing that could be heard before the door unlocked and Hermione walked out with slightly puffy eyes. The sight broke Fleur's heart; Hermione always came off as strong and she never seemed to let anyone else get to her so to see her in such a state was surprising to say the least. "I'm fine guys . . . honestly." Hermione put on her best smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I was just taken a bit off-guard, that's all."

Before Hermione could try to continue to deflect Ginny grabbed her friend and pulled her into a hug. "Don't even think about his words for a second Hermione." Ginny spoke into Hermione's hair. "You're a bloody hero."

"Thanks Gin . . ." Hermione spoke softly as she disentangled herself from the red-head and looked sheepishly at the confused blonde.

Ginny looked between the two girls for a moment, seeming to debate with herself about something. "I'm going to leave you two alone for a moment. I have a feeling I'm not needed." Ginny smiled over at her friend who was now blushing and then turned her attention to Fleur, giving her a meaningful look as if she was saying 'don't fuck this up' before she departed.

Fleur frowned as she stepped into the brunette's personal space. "'Ermione, what 'appened?"

"It's nothing." Hermione waved it off and walked to the mirror to splash some water on her face. "Malfoy is just a stupid git."

Fleur watched Hermione closely for a moment, it most definitely was not nothing and no matter how much Hermione tried to convince her she was okay she knew it was a lie. "We're ditching."

"We're what?" Hermione turned around, looking completely mortified and Fleur had to stop herself from laughing at the look on Hermione's face.

"We're ditching." Fleur stated firmly again. "You said you were going to make zings up to me did you not?"

"I did, but-"

"Bon." Fleur smiled as she grabbed Hermione's hand. "Zen we best get going before we get caught."

"F-Fleur." Hermione tried to protest, but she was too weak when it came to the veela and caved in. "Where are we going?" Hermione sighed as Fleur pulled her past the carriage she thought they would be spending their time in, but Fleur just shrugged her shoulders in response as they headed into the forbidden forest.

"I don't know." Fleur smiled sheepishly over at the very confused Gryffindor. "I zink you will 'ave to lead ze way from 'ere. I don't really remember 'ow to get back to zat lake." Hermione seemed to light up at the prospect of going to her favorite hidden spot and seeing Hermione cheer up made the danger of getting caught ditching completely worth it for the veela. She remembered Hermione telling her it was her favorite place to go to get away from everything and had hoped that going there would make Hermione feel better.

"It's this way." Hermione practically beamed as she started tugging Fleur through the forests; if anyone saw Hermione Granger ditching with Fleur Delacour they would think they had gone looney. Yes, this was definitely a momentous day.

/

The air was brisk and both girls were very thankful that this fall and now winter had been kind to them and when they crossed the threshold to the lake Fleur was shocked that the air seemed to grow warmer. She had failed to notice how nice the temperature was in the little area when she was in her inebriated state, but now that she was sober she was able to appreciate the magic floating in the air.

"Ees zis entire area enchanted?" Fleur asked in awe as she looked at the glimmering lake that was just begging to be swam in.

"Oui." Hermione smiled over at the blonde. "You didn't notice the first time?"

"Non . . " Fleur shook her head. "I was quite . . . smashed as you English might say."

Hermione laughed at Fleur's terminology as she let go of her hand. "I haven't quite figured this place out myself, but yeah, it's always at a perfect temperature no matter what time of year it is."

"The water too?"

Hermione looked over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow at Fleur with a coy smile on her face. "Care to find out?"

Fleur just dumbly nodded her head as Hermione shook off her robe and loosened her tie before she started to unbutton her shirt while the veela watched, her eyes starting to subtly glow. Hermione looked back over her shoulder to see Fleur watching her intently and a blush spread across her cheeks. "Don't be a perv." Hermione huffed and threw her tie at the dumbstruck blonde.

"I was not being a perv." Fleur pouted. "I need 'elp wiz my zipper."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at the pouting veela; she was very aware that Fleur was perfectly capable of unzipping herself, but the chance to do so herself proved to be too tempting. "Fine." Hermione mumbled as she marched over the blonde, praying she didn't look too eager.

Fleur couldn't help but smile as she turned her back to Hermione, pulled her long blonde locks to one side, and looked over her shoulder at the brunette with softly glowing arctic eyes.

Hermione stood stalk still for a moment, her hand hovering over Fleur's zipper as she tried to summon what Gryffindor courage she had to keep her hand and nerves steady.

"Are you going to unzip me?" Fleur raised an eyebrow, making Hermione blush harder than she already was.

"I was getting to it." Hermione mumbled as she grasped the small tab at the top of her dress and slowly started to pull it down. The sound of the tab sliding down the zipper filled her ears, setting her on edge as her amber eyes drank in every inch of soft perfect flesh that became exposed. She let out a shaky breath as she pulled the tab the rest of the way down and took a step back when Fleur turned around.

"Merci." Fleur spoke softly as she pulled her arms through the holes and Hermione felt the air leave her lungs when Fleur started to slowly shimmy out of the blue fabric exposing her white lacy bra that made her skin look like it was glowing and complemented her bust quite well.

Hermione's eyes slightly widened as Fleur continued pushing the dress down so her well-toned stomach was free and then finally down her impossibly long legs before she stepped out of it and kicked off her heels. _'Wow . . . She is a bloody goddess.'_ Hermione thought to herself when Fleur stood up straight so Hermione could appreciate her in all of her glory.

"Who ees ze perv now?" Fleur grinned playfully at the awestruck prefect.

"S-sorry." Hermione quickly turned around and started unbuttoning her shirt with a dark blush adorning her cheeks. She tossed her shirt aside and pulled down her skirt with Fleur's ever watchful eyes on her; this time was so much better than the first time for the champion, because Fleur was completely sober and able to appreciate every curve of Hermione's body.

' _She really ees perfect.'_ Fleur thought to herself dreamily as she watched Hermione step towards the waters edge clad in only her black lingerie. Her glowing eyes worked their way up Hermione's lean legs up to her cute bubble butt to her shapely hips then up to the curve of her waist and then her dainty shoulders where she saw Hermione looking at her.

"I was just . . ." Fleur started to explain upon seeing the questioning yet amused look in Hermione's eyes.

"A-huh." Hermione smirked. "Are you going to stand there all day or are we going to go swimming?"

"Oui . . . but for ze record I was not being a . . ." Fleur scrunched up her nose as she approached the waters edge next to the brunette who was trying to keep a straight face. "Perv."

"Of course not." Hermione grinned as she headed towards the rock that hung over the lake and Fleur was about to place her foot in the water, but Hermione's voice halted her midmotion. "Not like that!"

Fleur huffed as she looked over at Hermione climbing up the rock. "Why not?"

"You have to jump in." Hermione crossed her arms with her hip jutted out when she was standing atop of her little mountain.

"I do not just . . . jump in Mademoiselle Granger."

"Too scared?" Hermione raised an eyebrow with a hint of challenge in her voice.

Fleur was not one to turn down such a challenge and she would be damned if she let the Gryffindor think she is a coward. "Fine. 'Ave eet your way." Fleur glared over at the smirking bookworm as she made her way over to the rock, climbed her way up, and stood next to Hermione.

"Are you ready?" Hermione grinned over at the veela pretending to be nonchalant.

"I suppose." Fleur sighed and was completely shocked when Hermione grabbed her hand.

"Come on, don't be a sour puss. I'll jump with you." Hermione smiled at the French witch and Fleur's heart all but melted on the spot. "It will be fun. I promise."

Fleur couldn't help but smile back at the eager brunette. "Alright."

"Ready?" Hermione looked down at the water and Fleur simply nodded her head. "Une . . ." Fleur laughed at Hermione counting in French for her. "Deux . . ." Hermione gave Fleur one last look, her amber eyes sparkling. "Trois!"

They both jumped, their hair flying behind them, and Fleur closed her eyes tightly, preparing for a cold welcome, but was pleasantly surprised when their entire bodies submerged into the water and she was surrounded by warmth.

They released their hold on each others hands, broke through the surface of the water, and Fleur was immediately greeted with a positively beaming Hermione Granger. "Well?"

"You were right." Fleur smiled back. "Eet was fun."

"Didn't you know Fleur?" Hermione spoke with a serious tone that made the veela furrow her brow in confusion. "I'm Hermione Granger, the brightest witch of her age. I'm always right." Hermione smirked and a laugh tumbled out of Fleur's lips.

Fleur grinned as she splashed Hermione with water. "And you zink I'm cocky."

"Well, you did go against a dragon in just shorts and a tank top." Hermione splashed water right back at the blonde.

"I zink eet ees more important to be agile against such a creature and I used a nonflammable spell for your information." Fleur stuck her tongue out at the girl treading water right in front of her.

"Really?" Hermione looked surprised at this new information, she had thought Fleur was just being cocky and stupid with her attire when she faced her dragon, but it turned out she was much smarter than her competition.

"Oui."

"That's bloody brilliant." Hermione gushed and Fleur felt the veela in her beam with pride at Hermione Granger calling her brilliant once more.

Fleur shrugged. "I 'ave my moments."

"I suppose you do." Hermione looked at Fleur with a twinkle in her eye and a nice quiet settled between them.

A small smile crossed Fleur's featured as she looked down at the glowing blue around her mixing with the red that enveloped Hermione. "You know, when Gabrielle and I were little we used to go under ze water and tell each ozer our secrets."

"You think I'm going to tell you all of my secrets?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the veela who was obviously stuck in fonder memories.

"Non." Fleur shook her head. "Zat would be too easy."

"Are you saying I'm difficult?" Hermione laughed and Fleur grinned.

"Of course not."

"Yeah, of course not." Hermione narrowed her eyes playfully at her companion. "Why did you guys go under the water to tell each other your secrets?" Hermione's face softened when she saw Fleur get lost in her own thoughts, a smile tugging at Fleur's lips once more.

"Because eet would muffle ze . . ." Fleur's eyes widened when realization dawned on her. "Sound. 'Ermione! Zats eet!"

Hermione looked completely perplexed by Fleur's outburst. "That's what?"

"Ze egg!" Fleur beamed over at the Gryffindor. "Zat ees 'ow I can muffle ze screeching!"

"You're right." Hermione smiled knowingly making Fleur look at her incredulously.

"You knew already?" Fleur pouted.

Hermione shrugged. "Viktor told me yesterday."

"So zat ees what zat brute was talking wiz you about."

Hermione raised an eyebrow at how Fleur referred to the Bulgarian. "Brute?"

"Oui." Fleur put up her nose as she swam to the shore and climbed her way up the rock with Hermione watching her every step.

Hermione tilted her head curiously to the side as Fleur approached the edge. "Do you not like Viktor? I mean, I know he's your competition, but you seem to get along just fine with Harry."

"I just do not see what ees so great about 'im." Fleur scoffed. "Everyone fawns over 'im because 'e can do a 'andstand on 'is broomstick as eef zat ees 'ard."

Hermione had to refrain from laughing as Fleur placed her hands on the edge of the rock and kicked her legs up into the air so she was doing a handstand herself as if to prove her point that Viktor Krum isn't as great as everyone thinks he is.

Hermione couldn't help but appreciate the small muscles slightly flexing under the skin of Fleur's arms, shoulders, and back as she kept herself balanced on the edge and then the veela even went so far as to take one hand off and balance on only one arm; it would seem Fleur Delacour was indeed very talented.

"Eet ees tres facile." Fleur pushed herself off of the rock and flipped into the water, swimming up to see Hermione grinning once more.

"Has anyone every told you your ego is far too big for your own good?" Hermione laughed.

Fleur grinned right back, wiping water from her eyes. "Non, never."

"Right." Hermione rolled her eyes with a smile. "I can now see how you got all of those broken bones as a child."

"Who told you about zat?" Fleur huffed, making Hermione's smile widen.

"Gabrielle."

"So zat ees what you two were talking about." Fleur scowled, looking off to the side.

"Why don't you two talk anymore?"

Fleur's scowl dropped as a thoughtful looked crossed her face, seeming to wrestle with herself for a moment. "I already told you-"

"That was a load of bollocks." Hermione cut Fleur off, burning the veela with the intense look in those golden eyes. "What's the truth?"

Fleur chewed on her lower lip for a moment as she looked down at the water; she supposed she could tell Hermione most of the truth in hopes of maybe helping Hermione open up. "Ze truz . . . well . . ." Fleur sighed and ran a hand through her wet blonde hair. "Eet ees complicated."

"That's what Gabrielle said."

Fleur nodded her head in agreement before she brought her arctic eyes back to Hermione's curious ones probing her for answers. "I suppose eet started when I 'ad a bit of a 'ard time wiz my zrall and I started to 'ang out wiz Veronique. I did some zings zat I'm not particularly proud of and Gabrielle did not approve. I stopped talking to 'er and started to 'ang out wiz Veronique more, which Gabrielle really 'ated and we started to drift apart. Every conversation became 'ostile and I admit zat eet ees mostly my fault for not speaking wiz her and making zings right and now . . . I zink eet ees too far gone for me to fix."

"That's not true." Hermione spoke softly, pulling Fleur's attention back to her. "It's never too late to make things right. I think she misses you and I think you miss her."

Fleur let out a sigh and looked off to the side. "I do."

"Then talk to her." Hermione smiled.

"Eets not zat simple."

"It's only complicated if you make it complicated." Hermione shrugged. "And by the way, if Veronique has caused so much trouble, why are you even friends with her?" Hermione scrunched up her nose at just the thought of the raven-haired girl.

Fleur laughed at the look on Hermione's face. "Zat ees anozer complicated story for anozer time."

Hermione raised an eyebrow at Fleur's lack of explanation once more. "Try me."

"Fine, I will keep eet as simples as possible." Fleur rolled her eyes. "I went zrough a very tough time and Veronique was ze only person zat was zere for me. She 'elped me learn how to cope wiz certain zings."

"That's still vague, but I'll take it." Hermione smiled and Fleur let out a relieved breath when Hermione didn't push any further. She was okay telling the brunette most of the truth, which was an oddity in and of itself, but she could never tell her everything. It would leave her far too exposed. "I suppose it's only fair for me to tell you the truth now huh?" Hermione's quiet voice broke Fleur from her own musings.

Fleur frowned when she saw that far off look that was usually reserved for when Hermione's scar was brought up, cross her face. Her eyes briefly flickered to said scar and she couldn't help but feel a painful tug when she looked back up to see that broken expression on Hermione's face. "You do not 'ave to 'Ermione . . ."

"No, it's . . ." Hermione let out a shaky breath. "It's fine. I trust you."

Fleur felt her heart sink at those words; Hermione saying she trusted her filled her with guilt for so many reasons she really didn't want to even think about in this moment, the bet being the one bothering her the most.

"It's funny . . . you know . . ." Hermione continued on with a sad look in her eyes as she looked down at her scar. "I thought it didn't bother me anymore, but I guess I was wrong."

Fleur furrowed her brow in confusion as Hermione swam to a long flat rock right by the waters edge and pulled herself up so she could lay down on her back, looking up at the sky as she talked. "Does zis 'ave to do wiz your scar and Malfoy?" Fleur asked softly as she swam towards the rock, but stayed in the water, looking up at the thoughtful prefect.

Hermione was quiet for a moment as she contemplated what she was going to say. "Yes."

"What 'appened . . .?"

"Well . . ." Hermione sighed, steeling her courage before she relived one of her most painful memories.

_-Flashback-_

It was so dark and everything was happening so fast that it made Hermione's head spin; they had been at Hogwarts one moment and then the next Hermione was leading Umbridge to the forest to save her friends, and then Harry was rushing them to the Department of Mysteries to rescue his Uncle.

Hermione Granger really did not like to be unprepared for anything and it was painfully obvious how little everyone knew as they wandered the dark corridors. Goosebumps ran up and down her skin, it was quiet, dead quiet, the type of silence that left you unsettled, terrified, and made the hairs on the back of your neck stand at attention. She had a horrible feeling about this whole thing; she had warned Harry that this was probably just a trap, but there was no consoling her friend who was dead set on his Uncle being in danger. Sirius was the only family that Harry had left so Hermione could hardly blame him and that is what put her in this current predicament.

"Are these . . ." Ron gulped as they entered a room filled with green jars. "Brains . . .?"

Hermione turned her attention to what was in fact a bunch of brains floating in jars filled with glowing green liquid. "Yes Ronald." Hermione tried to stay calm for everyone, but was finding it hard to do so when surrounded by something that should be in a horror movie. Ron reached to touch one curiously and Hermione yelled out. "Ron! Don't!" But it was already too late; a piece from the brain shot out through the jar and attached itself to his hand.

"Oi! Get it off!" Ron cried out while Hermione tried to keep him silent.

A quiet spell from Luna made the brain detach from the squealing red-head, making him calm down. "Thanks Luna." He sighed.

"Don't. Touch. Anything." Hermione spoke sternly, giving Ron a meaningful look that made him gulp and nod his head.

They entered another door and walked into a hall filled with dozens of glowing orbs. "This is the place." Harry spoke with a hint of trepidation in his voice as the group carefully made their way down the rows, their footsteps being the only thing that broke the eerie silence.

"I have a really bad feeling about this Harry." Hermione spoke quietly when he turned down a row, but Harry just shook off her comment and frowned when he saw no one there.

"This makes no sense." Harry furrowed his brow in confusion. "He was supposed to be right here."

"I told you this was a trap." Hermione looked over her shoulder to Ginny with her back facing her, pointing the tip of her lit wand behind them to cover the rear next to Neville and Luna.

"This is the . . ." Harry continued on as if Hermione said nothing, a certain orb catching eye. "This is the orb from my dreams . . . the prophecy . . ." He spoke quietly as he reached out for it.

"Harry! No!" Hermione cried out, but once again it was too late; Harry already had the orb in his hands, looking at it in wonder.

The second Harry touched the glowing object a wicked cackle broke the silence, putting everyone on edge. "Well, well, well . . ." Bellatrix Lestrange stepped into the light. "If it isn't Potter and his friends. I told the Dark Lord you would come." The dark-haired witch smiled showing her horrid teeth that were as rotten as her insides.

The group went to run but they were suddenly surrounded on all sides. "Hand over the prophecy boy and we might let you live." Came the deep growl of Fenrir Greyback.

"Not a chance." Ginny shot back with a scowl on her face.

Bellatrix laughed, making the entire group stiffen at the horrible sound. "Oh, I did so hope you would put up a fight. This should be fun."

Ginny wasn't going to wait for the death eaters to attack first and threw out a quick stupefy, sending one flying back. It was quiet for a moment and everyone's eyes were wide, but the silence was short lived and the dark room was suddenly lit up with different colors streaming past their heads and shattering glass.

"Run!" Hermione yelled as she shot out her own spells at the death eaters and no one had to be told twice. The sound of crunching glass and frantic breathing filled Hermione's ears as spells shot past her, a difindo spell grazed her arm, leaving a deep cut, but she did not falter.

They broke off in pairs as they desperately searched for their exit, but the task was almost impossible with spells whizzing by their heads and clouds of black smoke streaking through the room with the death eaters hot on their tail. One appeared next to Hermione, grinning wickedly in his black smoke, but a quick stupefy sent him flying down an isle and Hermione grabbed Harry's arm, dragging him down another long corridor with a door at the end. "This way!" Hermione yelled over her shoulder and everyone came sprinting down the isle, sweat pouring down their faces.

Hermione paused at the door as people piled in, but the death eaters were so close; there was no way they were all going to make it. "Hermione! Come on!" Harry tugged on her arm, but she pulled it from his grasp.

"Go." Hermione spoke quietly as she readied her wand and Harry looked at her questioningly. "I'll hold them off."

"Hermione, no." Harry tried to pull her once again, but Hermione stood firm. "I'm not leaving you!"

"I'll be fine." She smiled reassuringly at him and once Neville made it through the door Hermione shoved Harry in, closing it tightly behind him and turned back around quickly to shoot out a destructive spell. "Confringo!" Hermione cried out and all the isles started toppling down on the death eaters, letting out angry cries.

Hermione almost let out a sigh of relief and was about to join her friends when that dark cackle filled her ears once more, setting her teeth on edge. "Did you really think that would work muddy?"

Hermione steeled what bravery she had and stood her ground in front of the door. "You're not getting past me. It's too late." Hermione had the courage to smile in the face of the evil standing before her. "They're already gone."

"Is that so?" Bellatrix raised an amused eyebrow and Hermione started to feel a little nervous when more death eaters joined her with anger flaring in their eyes. "You have a lot of spirit." Bellatrix smirked, stepping closer. "It will make it even more fun to break you." Hermione opened her mouth to cast another stupefy, but Bellatrix had far more experience and was much faster than the young fifth year. "Crucio!" The raven-haired witch yelled out gleefully.

Hermione immediately dropped to the ground, letting out a cry; it felt as if hot knives were stabbing her all over, not just on the outside, but in all of her very important internal organs, ripping her apart from the inside out. She never knew a single word could cause so much pain to rip through her entire body and tear her insides apart; this was a painful lesson she would absolutely never forget.

When the pain subsided Bellatrix stood over Hermione's panting body covered in sweat, looking up defiantly with bright amber eyes while she tried to reach for her wand that had rolled away from her. "Still trying to play the tough act are we?" Bellatrix grinned wickedly. "I like you muddy; I think I may keep you as a pet when I'm done with this and then . . ." Bellatrix leaned down, whispering into her ear. "When I tire of you I will get to watch the light completely leave your eyes. It's truly a wonderful thing to experience muddy."

Hermione looked up at the witch, a fire burning in her chest, as she spat right into Bellatrix Lestrange's eye. "You filthy little mudblood!" Bellatrix cried out before another crucio curse left her lips, making Hermione's writhe once more.

The brunette's back arched off the ground as she gritted her teeth, trying to keep her scream held behind her clenched teeth; she did not want to give Bellatrix Lestrange the satisfaction of hearing her cries of agony, but it slipped out anyway, making a gleeful look cross the death eater's face once more.

This crucio went on far longer than the last one and the stabbing feeling intensified tenfold; Bellatrix was obviously just playing with her with the first one. This one was so much worse; Hermione feared her internal organs were going to actually explode right out of her flesh if this continued on for much longer or that her pounding heart might just stop beating altogether. Fate was kind to Hermione though and another death eater cut the crazed woman off.

"Bellatrix, we don't have time for this." Came a soft hiss next to Bellatrix, making the wicked witch stop so Hermione got a little respite from the pain. "We must catch the others."

"Of course." Bellatrix smiled over at the other death eater with her insane smile. "We will have to finish this later muddy, but until then . . ." Bellatrix grabbed Hermione by her hair, bringing tears to the Gryffindor's eyes as she dragged her to her feet and pulled out a knife, holding it to her throat. "You will make for good bait."

"They'll never give you what you want." Hermione spoke through pants and she felt the sharp cold edge of the blade push into her neck, making a small line of blood drizzle down her throat.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that." Bellatrix spoke into her ear as the death eaters kicked open the door and Hermione was brought in with Bellatrix's hot breath on her neck with her wand outstretched in one hand and the knife in the other. "Ooooh Potter!" Bellatrix sang out with laughter in her voice. "I think we have something you waaaant."

Hermione took in the dimly lit room they entered, it was bare and had stones everywhere with one large archway in the middle with a light gray smoke oozing out of it. Her bright eyes darted left and right, praying her friends already left.

"Oh come on Potter." Bellatrix smiled. "Don't play hard to get now! Don't you want your muddy back!?"

"Don't do it Harry!" Hermione cried out, but the knife being pushed into her throat again stilled her voice.

Harry ran from his hiding spot upon hearing his friend in distress, the prophecy still in his hands. "Hermione!?"

"Ah, there you are." Bellatrix smiled, but it quickly dropped from her face when glowing white streams filed the room and the Order showed up looking even more upset than the death eaters. Bellatrix kept her grip firm on her safety insurance and took note of the objects in each of the order's hands.

"Let the girl go Bella." Tonks growls, holding Helga Hufflepuff's cup firmly in her hand.

Bella sneered at her relative's demand. "Give us the prophecy and those objects and I might consider it."

"It's over Bella." Sirius sighed. "We won."

Hermione would have let out a sigh of relief at seeing the Order come to their rescue if it wasn't for the knife being held firmly to her neck. "Since your friends took something of ours, we will just have to take something of theirs won't we?" Bellatrix hissed into Hermione's ear, making the brunette shiver at her cold words. "Such a pity." Bellatrix sighed. "I was so going to enjoy breaking you, but no matter." Bellatrix pulled the knife from Hermione's neck and in one quick movement plunged it deep into the golden girl's chest.

Hermione's eyes widened, she didn't even have time to let out a cry of pain as the blade dug into her and imbedded itself deep into her chest. She felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her and everything was going in slow motion as she dropped to her knees. She could faintly hear the cries of Harry and her friends in the background screaming out her name while the Order stabbed fangs into each of their horcruxes Bella's master had so carefully hidden; it would seem the order had been busy collecting the objects only for them to destroy them all at once so Voldemort would have no idea they had them in the first place.

Hermione sat there on her knees, her face paling immediately as she looked down at the blade stuck in her chest in disbelief. Bellatrix just smirked as the order and Hermione's friends roared out in anger and started attacking them viciously.

With a simple move of her hand Bellatrix grabbed the hilt of the blade and pulled it out of Hermione's chest as if it was the easiest task in the world.

Hermione let out a gasp as the blade exited her body, looking down once more to see blood pouring from the open wound. She tried to pull together what muggle knowledge she had and put a hand to her chest, pushing it hard against the flesh to try to slow the bleeding, but the thick crimson liquid kept leaking through her fingers, trickling down to the floor and staining the stones beneath her.

She fell down, holding herself up with her one free hand as she watched the droplets hit the ground in disbelief; this couldn't be happening, but it was. Her hand slipped and she fell down completely to the ground now, everything was fading in from black then to bright colors as she watched her friends fight for their lives. She looked around and thought of how much she was going to miss them and then she looked to Harry and prayed he wouldn't blame himself for this even though she knew he would.

She was going to die. That was a fact at this point. She had lost far too much blood and she could feel her heartbeat fading out in her ears and entire body. She looked up once more as things went from black, then colorful and bright again, and saw Sirius and Harry in front of the veil fending off multiple death eaters. Sirius had briefly disarmed Bellatrix and knocked her back, but Hermione watched in horror as she crept up on Harry with her dagger held over her head.

"No . . ." Hermione spoke quietly and with every ounce of strength she had left in her body she crawled towards the veil. She pushed herself up, stumbling towards the battle, and just as Bellatrix was driving down the dagger Hermione leapt forward, pushing the wicked witch with all of her strength.

The last thing Hermione saw was Bellatrix's wild eyes looking at her with more hate than she thought a single person could possess as she let out a cry and flew back into the smoky veil. Hermione held her breath, closing her eyes tightly, waiting for Bellatrix to strike, but the evil witch never reemerged. She opened her tired eyes once more to see Harry looking at her with so much love and concern and then everything faded to black as she collapsed onto the floor.

_-End Flashback-_

"Everyone knows the rest of the story . . ." Hermione spoke quietly, trying to keep her voice even as Fleur watched her with broken blue eyes. "The great battle between Harry Potter and Voldemort; how Harry came back from the dead. I suppose we both did . . . I don't know how they saved me." Hermione chewed on her lower lip. "I was told I was very lucky . . ." Hermione scoffed. "One inch to the right and it would have gone straight through my heart . . . I was out for weeks and it took many blood replenishing potions to bring me back, but Bellatrix . . . she never came back . . . I . . ." Hermione choked on the words as tears sprung to her eyes. "I killed her. Malfoy's aunt . . . I killed her and there's nothing I can do to change that. I . . ." The tears started to roll down the prefect's cheeks as sobs threatened to wrack her body once more. "I didn't mean to. I never hoped to kill anyone in my entire life and now I'm just as bad as those death eaters . . ."

"'Ermione . . ." Fleur spoke softly as she pulled herself up onto the rock and crawled over the crying witch, gently wiping her tears as she settled herself between the Gryffindor's legs. "You did what any ozer person would 'ave done. Non, actually you were much braver zan anyone else." Fleur looked into those shattered golden eyes, trying to give her whatever reassurance she could offer. "You saved everyone. You saved 'Arry. Eef eet wasn't for you 'e would 'ave never been able to fight Voldemort . . . zings would be very different right now."

"But I-"

"Non." Fleur shook her head, making Hermione stop. "Zat 'orrible woman would 'ave killed so many ozers. Ze one life you took saved so many 'Ermione. You are nozing like zem. You are . . ." Fleur sighed as she ran her fingers through Hermione's brown locks. "Amazing."

Hermione shifted her eyes to the side, blushing slightly at Fleur's kind words. "I'm not."

"You are." Fleur stated firmly, her arctic blue eyes leaving no room for an argument. "You 'ave such a kind 'eart 'Ermione. . ." Fleur spoke quietly, her eyes softening as Hermione's own locked with hers again. "Only you would be torn up about ending zat wicked woman and 'er rein of terror. You're so . . " Fleur licked her lips, looking at Hermione's own cherry lips she itched to kiss and show how amazing she really was, because words really didn't do her justice in this moment. "Special." Fleur spoke breathlessly as Hermione leaned up on her elbows, meeting the veela halfway as she pressed her lips to Fleur's in a soft kiss that made Fleur's aching heart thump painfully in her chest.

Hermione tentatively brought her hand up to tangle in Fleur's wet blonde hair that dripped water droplets onto her now dry body, making goosebumps erupt all over. She pulled the veela in more as she laid down fully, pouring all the pain, all the sadness she held inside, and trapped it in Fleur's amazingly soft lips.

Fleur pulled away for a moment to stare down at the young prodigy, her lips still tingling from the sorrowful kiss. She brought her hand up, wiping what remained Hermione's tears before it drifted down to those lips that enraptured her entire being and ran her thumb across Hermione's plump lower lip, making the brunette's breath hitch.

Her eyes started to subtly glow at the noise before they looked down to the scar that marred Hermione's flesh; a permanent reminder of the pain she endured. Without a second thought Fleur dipped her head down and pressed her lips against the mark as a way to apologize for all the thing Hermione had to go through, for everything she sacrificed for her friends, for the wizarding and muggle world that had no idea what the golden girl had done.

Hermione felt more tears spring to her eyes at the sweet, innocent gesture. She closed her eyes, relishing in the feeling of Fleur kissing her where the most pain resided in her.

Fleur let her lips linger for a moment longer before she slowly kissed her way up Hermione's neck, then her jaw. She pulled away to look down at the perfect specimen beneath her making Hermione open her bright golden eyes once more. They shared a look of understanding before Hermione grabbed Fleur by the back of her neck and pulled her into a kiss that intensified almost immediately.

Hermione felt like her body was on fire and her hands had a mind of their own as they trailed down to Fleur's back, holding onto her shoulders as if she was the only thing keeping her in tact.

Fleur balled her hands into tight fists next to Hermione's head to keep her wandering hands at bay, but it became increasingly difficult when Hermione arched her back and their bare skin made contact. Fleur could practically feel her eyes roll into the back of her head at the heavenly feeling of skin on skin with the war hero.

Hermione bent her knees, squeezing the veela between them, spurring Fleur into action as Hermione slipped her tongue into her mouth and Fleur started to pulsate her hips slowly into Hermione, making both let out a soft moan.

Fleur laid her body fully atop of Hermione to get more of that flesh she craved so badly, it was completely addicting and all consuming. She felt Hermione buck against her hips a bit, making another moan tumble from her lips.

Hermione's hands slid down to the small of her back, letting her fingertips take in the feel of the French witch's soft skin she had yet to touch, filling her with a feeling of euphoria, that and what Fleur was doing with her hips pushing slowly between her legs. She could practically feel Fleur's hands shaking by her head and she pulled away, looking up at the blonde with brightly glowing neon blue orbs.

"It's okay." Hermione said with a small smile, making Fleur look confused. "You can touch me."

Fleur felt her cheeks heat up, but she didn't need to be told twice as she pushed Hermione's bra strap so it hung limply to the side, exposing just a little bit more of Hermione's soft flesh. She locked eyes with Hermione once more, making sure it was okay, and when she saw no hesitance in her amber eyes she leaned back in and pressed her lips against her dainty shoulder while the fingertips of her right hand danced down her ribs and then slid further down her side with a line of goosebumps following close behind.

She kissed her way to Hermione's neck, sucking on the pulse point where she could feel Hermione's heart hammering while Hermione writhed beneath her, her breathing becoming ragged. Hermione's hitched breaths and soft moans of appreciation were enough to drive Fleur to insanity and she all but tipped over the edge when Hermione dug her nails into her back.

Her right hand gripped Hermione's left hip tightly, keeping the bookworm in place as her hips started to pulse against Hermione's again out of pure instinct. She wanted Hermione so badly it was starting to physically ail her; her body was aching for the prefect and it showed with every slow movement of her hips that made Hermione gasp.

The apex predator in her was screaming for her to take the brunette right there; the flesh was willing and the soul was weak, but something much stronger held her back and she pulled away before she got too ahead of herself making Hermione look up at her completely perplexed as to why Fleur stopped.

"Je suis désolé." Fleur sighed, already hating herself for stopping their actions. "But eef I don't stop now I don't zink I will be capable of 'olding back."

A small smile flitted across Hermione's face and she ran her hand through Fleur's slowly drying hair with appreciation for her consideration even though she herself was feeling very sexually frustrated at the moment. "I understand. . . Thank you." Hermione spoke softly.

Fleur tilted her head to the side curiously looking down at the prefect. "For what?"

"For everything." Hermione smiled at the adorable expression on Fleur's face. "I really needed this."

Fleur nodded her head, returning the smile. "Of course."

"Want to get back in the water?" Hermione wiggled beneath Fleur playfully, making the veela laugh.

"Eef you wish."

/

The two spent the rest of the day laughing and playing in the water; Fleur kept showing off her gymnastic abilities, making Hermione grin at how childish the blonde could be, and before they knew it the day had escaped them and it had grown dark.

"I guess we should head back." Hermione sighed as she got dressed.

Fleur noticed the trepidation in Hermione's voice and realized the Gryffindor might not be quite ready enough to go back to the castle. "Would you like to stay wiz me tonight?" Fleur asked as she pulled on her dress and put her heels back on.

Hermione chewed on her lower lip at the question, secretly happy Fleur asked. "You wouldn't mind?"

"Non." Fleur smiled reassuringly at the prefect. "Of course not."

"Alright then." Hermione's smile returned full force as she tugged Fleur to the carriage. When they arrived Hermione paused in her steps. "How will I get in without other people noticing?"

"Come to my window." Fleur kissed Hermione on the cheek before she headed into the carriage.

"That bloody window." Hermione growled as she made her way around and waited outside patiently for Fleur to que her to come in. This was a very odd day for Hermione indeed, not only did she skip a whole day of school, but now she was standing outside of the Beuxbatons carriage waiting to sneak into Fleur Delacour's room.

Fleur's beautiful head popped out of the window with a big grin on her face. "Ze coast ees clear."

Hermione sighed. "That's great and all, but how do you propose I get in." The window was a good ten feet from the ground and she did not trust her upper body strength to pull herself all the way in.

"Give me your 'and." Fleur leaned out further, stretching to grab Hermione's hand in her own. When Fleur had a good grasp on Hermione, she helped the Gryffindor up, and Hermione tumbled through the window with little to no grace, landing on top of a laughing veela in a jumbled heap on the floor.

Hermione tried to keep the smile off her face, but it was impossible with Fleur's contagious laughter. "Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up." Hermione spoke as she stood up and Fleur followed suit.

Fleur pointed to a pair of pajama shorts and a tshirt on her dresser. "I 'ave a change of clothes for you. I will change een ze bazroom." And with that Fleur slipped into her private bathroom, getting out of her wet clothes, and into dry ones. When she was presentable she knocked on the door before she entered and heard a soft come in, signaling Hermione was good as well.

Fleur felt another smile tug at her lips when she saw the Gryffindor in her clothing, yawning as she sprawled out on her bed. "Tired?" Hermione just nodded her head with a sleepy smile, it had definitely been a draining day.

Fleur responded by turning off the lights, the moonlight streaming in through the window giving them all the light they would need as she went to settle onto her couch.

Hermione frowned when she saw Fleur lay down on the sofa. "Where are you going?"

"I zought you would prefer eef I slept over 'ere."

"Well you zought wrong." Hermione grinned, mocking Fleur's accent. "I'm not going to kick you out of your own bed Fleur."

"Eef you insist." Fleur shrugged and went to lay down next to Hermione. She laid there on her back, looking up at her ceiling, her heart pounding once more. She had been tired herself, but now lying next to Hermione, she felt painfully awake.

Hermione felt the same as she laid on her own back, twiddling her thumbs before she let out a sigh and turned to lay on her side facing Fleur. "So . . ."

Fleur felt herself smile as she followed suit and laid on her side, resting the side of her head on her hand, supported by her elbow while she looked at the girl less than two feet in front of her. "So . . ."

"Are you going to talk to Gabrielle?" Hermione spoke quietly, afraid to break the peaceful silence surrounding them.

"Per'aps."

"I thought that maybe you guys didn't get along because of your art." Hermione spoke truthfully, secretly happy that Fleur might have another support system. "I'm glad that's not it."

"Oh?" Fleur raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Because you're insanely talented Fleur and I would hate to see it go to waste. I think it's important you have someone else believe in you."

Fleur felt herself blush at Hermione's statement, her heart fluttering in her chest. "So you believe een me?" Fleur smirked and she could barely make out Hermione rolling her eyes.

"Yes Fleur, as loony as that sounds, I believe in you. I mean . . ." Hermione sighed. "Will the clan really not let you do what you want?"

A sad smile slid onto Fleur's face. "Non."

"Well, they can bugger off." Hermione huffed, making Fleur laugh. "So tell me, if you didn't have the clan to take care of, what would you do after school?"

"I never really zought about eet." Fleur furrowed her brows, deep in thought. "Eef I was free to do as I wish . . . I would probably travel ze world and draw what I saw I guess."

"That sounds brilliant." Hermione grinned. "You should do it."

"Should I now?" Fleur raised an amused eyebrow.

Hermione nodded her head. "Oui."

"Just forget ze clan, run away, and do as I wish . . . Hmmm. . ." Fleur hummed as her mind drifted off to what could be and she found she rather liked it. "Eet does sound nice."

"Then do it." Hermione pressed, moving forward a bit. "Your life is your own Fleur and your parents shouldn't be able to dictate what you do with it. Your happiness should come first."

"Zat ees easier said zan done." Fleur sighed as she absentmindedly ran a hand through Hermione's soft hair. "What do you want to do after school?"

"I don't know." Hermione chewed on her lower lip, deep in thought. "I guess I never thought about it either. Maybe start up a book shop or something." Hermione shrugged.

Fleur's whole body shook as she tried to hold back her laughter. "Of course you would."

"Oh sod off." Hermione laughed, pushing Fleur playfully. "I'm sorry my dream isn't as exciting as yours."

"Non, non." Fleur shook her head and smiled. "I zink eet sounds nice."

Hermione just hummed her agreement as her eyes grew heavy and another yawn escaped her lips. She felt so warm and safe in Fleur's bed that it was incredibly difficult for her now to stay awake.

"I zink eet ees past your bed time." Fleur spoke as she kept running her fingers through Hermione's hair.

Hermione tried to glare at her, but she didn't have the heart to when Fleur was being so sweet with her ministrations that were helping to lull her to sleep. "Maybe." Hermione finally replied sleepily as she turned over so her back was facing Fleur, making the blonde stop her movements.

Fleur was about to turn her own back to Hermione but a soft hand grabbed her own before it could retreat and tugged the veela towards her.

A soft blush overcame Fleur's features as she hesitantly complied and scooted over while Hermione moved back until she was pressed flush against Fleur's body.

Hermione let out a content sigh as Fleur draped her arm around her midsection, her heart pounding in her chest. "Goodnight Fleur." Hermione spoke with a little smile as she started to drift off into a peaceful sleep.

Fleur was grateful Hermione's back was pressed to her so she couldn't see the perplexed look on her face. Once again she felt that protective instinct kick in as she looked at the side of Hermione's face that was now completely relaxed, a stark contrast to how she was before. How could someone who harbored so much pain look so entirely peaceful hours later in her arms?

She felt the veela in her start to purr at the proximity, something it seldom did, but it could not be stopped when she herself felt so content in that moment. With a soft sigh of her own she laid her head on the pillow and buried face in Hermione's hair and neck as she tightened her hold on the prodigy, pulling her impossibly closer. "Goodnight 'Ermione."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't care what anyone says, this is the best chapter I've ever written and I will fight someone if they disagree haha Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed the big reveal on how Hermione got her scar. There was no way I was going to have them defeat Voldemort and not go into how :) As always, I would love to hear your guys' thoughts on the newest installment :D


	17. Ultimately

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! More Cruel Intentions :D The song that inspired this chapter is 'Ultimately' by Khai Dreams :)

_Ultimately I don't understand a thing  
_ _I try to do the best I can  
_ _I know you try to do the same  
_ _We're just so bound to make mistakes  
_ _You could call it a disposition  
_ _I apologize for all your tears  
_ _I wish I could be different  
_ _But I'm still growing up  
_ _Into the one you can call your love  
_ _I don't know if I'll ever be enough  
_ _I'm throwing in my chips  
_ _I guess I tend to push my luck_

The next morning Fleur woke up she was pleasantly surprised to feel a warm body pressed against hers still held snuggly in her arms. She let out a sleepy sigh as she buried her face further into soft brown tresses, inhaling the scent of lavender as she pulled Hermione in closer. She tried to drift back to sleep but finally registering the feeling of Hermione's firm butt pressed into her crotch made the task impossible.

She bit her lower lip, holding back a groan when Hermione wiggled further back into her causing a delicious friction that made any innocent thoughts escape her mind. "'Ermione . . ." She spoke softly, waking the slumbering Gryffindor.

"Hmmm?" Hermione replied groggily, enjoying the warmth enveloping her.

Fleur tried to disentangle herself, but Hermione refused to move. "Per'aps we should get up."

"I'll consider it in a minute." Hermione replied with a sleepy smile, moving further into the girl behind her, making the veela inside Fleur grow restless.

"If we don't get up soon . . ." Fleur mumbled as her hand moved to Hermione's hip, pushing the prodigy's shirt up a bit. "I can't be held responsible for my actions." Her eyes started to subtly glow when her hand made contact with skin and gripped the brunette's hip, pulling her impossibly closer.

Hermione felt her body heat up even more at the contact, biting her lower lip at the feeling of Fleur's needy hand pulling her into herself and her thumb rubbing circle on her hip. "Oh?"

"Oui." Fleur nodded against Hermione's neck, making brown locks move to reveal her slender neck which she so wished to devour. Fleur wasn't used to waking up next to someone in the morning especially if they hadn't slept together and even if they had she promptly kicked the person out before they could try to pass out in her bed. This new feeling was overwhelming and her foggy head was making it difficult to fight off her natural instincts when the object of her affection was so close to her. It was almost as if she was in a dream state.

Hermione made no move to get out of bed and Fleur couldn't deny the pull she felt towards the Gryffindor any longer as she placed her lips on the delicate flesh of the nape of Hermione's neck. She heard Hermione's breath hitch and it just spurred her on to suck on the skin, reveling in the taste of Hermione Granger as her right hand moved up under her shirt to feel how Hermione's small muscles in her stomach flexed when her fingertips brushed past them.

"Fleur." Hermione let out a sigh at the veela's gentle but firm touch running up her stomach. This was all new to the prefect as well and she couldn't say waking up like this was unpleasant; she had no idea her body could feel on fire and alert at such an ungodly hour.

Fleur smirked at how Hermione moved against her, pressing herself further into the blonde as she kissed her way up the bookworms neck. "Oui?" Fleur whispered into Hermione's ear, sending shivers down Hermione's spine that Fleur was actually able to feel this time due to their proximity.

"I . . . Ummm . . ." Hermione seemed to lose the ability to speak when Fleur bit down on her earlobe and she felt the veela's warm breath enter her ear and slide down her neck making her shudder. ' _How in the bloody hell can she be so sexy so early?' "_ Never mind." Hermione mumbled when Fleur went back to sucking on her neck and her hand slid further up to her ribs, her fingertips dancing across each bone as she made her way to Hermione's chest.

Fleur paused for a moment when she was beneath the swell of Hermione's breast and realized there was no bra to block her path. She desperately wanted to touch the uncharted territory she had yet to feel, to conquer what had been impossible up until this moment. "Don't stop." Hermione practically moaned out when Fleur stuttered in her steps and that was all the veela needed to hear to keep going.

Fleur pushed her hand up the last couple inches and grabbed Hermione's right breast in her hand, almost letting out a moan herself at the feel of how perfectly it fit into her hand; the narcissist in her was absolutely convinced that Hermione Granger was indeed sculpted just for her.

When her thumb ran across Hermione's nipple that was now perked another soft moan slipped from Hermione's mouth that made Fleur bite down on her neck to hold back her own sounds of pleasure. The beautiful musical notes that slipped past Hermione's lips was by far the best thing the veela had ever heard and they were entirely too addicting.

When Hermione moved her hips a bit so her butt pushed further into Fleur the champion almost lost it; she needed more and it seemed Hermione was in the same boat so with one last squeeze to Hermione's breast Fleur turned the brunette so she was lying on her back and pressed her mouth to the writhing girl beneath her.

One of Hermione's hands immediately tangled into her messy blonde hair, pulling Fleur in as close as she could while her tongue traced Fleur's lower lip, egging the veela on.

Fleur was sure if she opened her eyes in a dark room right now they would provide all the light needed. She was in heaven right now with Hermione Granger by her side pushing her tongue into her mouth which Fleur happily greeted with her own while her hand slid down Hermione's tight stomach. She knew what she wanted to do; she knew she could make the brunette squirm and moan out her name for hours once she was able to finally cross that final threshold. She was usually so good with Hermione and keeping her urges at bay, but the early morning fog was making her head dizzy and she was not strong enough to stop herself.

Her fingertips slowly made their way to the band on Hermione's shorts, pushing her fingertips underneath ever so slightly, making the Gryffindor instinctively lift her hips up to meet her touch. Fleur was so close, she could have it all right now; she could take something from Hermione that no one else would ever be able to take again, but a hand snatched her wrist before she could get too far into the Gryffindor's shorts.

"Fleur, I don't . . ." Hermione blushed as she pulled away. "I don't think I'm quite ready for that."

Fleur felt her own cheeks heat up, her bright sapphires glowing a blinding neon blue as she looked down at the brunette with guilt filling her gut. "Je suis désolé 'Ermione. I did not mean to push."

"It's fine." Hermione quickly got out of the bed, running a hand through her messy hair as the reality of what they almost just did finally hit her.

Fleur watched the flustered Gryffindor grab her clothing from the dresser and head into the bathroom, seemingly lost in her own world. The blonde let out a sigh as she sat up on her knees and rested her forehead on the headboard of her bed, willing her pounding heart and raging hormones to calm down. ' _What ees wrong wiz me . . .? She just poured 'er 'eart out to me and I try to take advantage of 'er ze next morning?'_

When she heard the bathroom door opening she rolled her head to the side, keeping her forehead resting as she curiously watched Hermione put on her shoes. "I 'ope I did not upset you."

"N-no, it's nothing like that." Hermione looked over at the veela and felt her heart melt at the guilty look on Fleur's face. "It's fine." Hermione walked to the bed and grabbed both of Fleur's cheeks, pulling her in for a chaste kiss before she pulled away and gave Fleur the best reassuring smile she could. "Really."

Fleur felt the guilt increase tenfold when Hermione responded so sweetly to her after she had almost gone too far; if only she knew the truth. "Eef you say so." Fleur replied quietly, watching as Hermione headed to her window. "You are feeling better today?"

"Yeah, much better." Hermione nodded her head, putting one foot out the window. "Thank you Fleur . . . for everything." Hermione smiled softly at the blonde watching her. "Let's just hope my landing is smoother than the first time I fell out of here." Hermione sighed as she looked down outside with trepidation.

"Ees zat 'ow you left ze first time?" Fleur raised an amused eyebrow at the look on Hermione's face.

"Yup, I- whoah!" Hermione fell out of the window, landing on her back once more with a loud oof. "Zero for three." Hermione groaned as she looked up to see Fleur poke her head out of her window.

Fleur tried to stifle her laughter at the Gryffindor laying in a heap on the ground. "Are you alright?"

"Never been better." Hermione mumbled as she got up, wiping some dirt off of her robes.

Fleur smirked at the retreating prefect. "I suppose I will see you around?"

Hermione smiled as she turned around, walking backwards to look at the veela. "I suppose you will."

Fleur returned the smile, waving goodbye before she brought her head back into her room, and she promptly fell onto her back on her bed. Her thoughts immediately wandered to the brunette that had previously occupied the space she was lying on. _'Why do I suddenly feel so 'orrible . . .? Why do I 'ave to care so much about 'er? Zis wasn't part of ze plan.'_ She flipped over onto her stomach with a groan, willing to push the unwanted thoughts out, but that proved problematic when she could still smell the Gryffindor on her sheets.

She guiltily inhaled the scent of lavender, letting out a dreamy sigh when she rolled back onto her back and her egg caught her eye. She perked up almost immediately upon seeing it sitting on her dresser begging to be opened and for the mystery to finally be revealed. ' _I completely forgot about zat damned egg.'_ Fleur grinned as she got up, beyond happy to have some sort of distraction as she drew a bath and grabbed her egg.

Once the water was as high as she would let it go she let out a shaky breath, looking at the egg suspiciously. "Zis better work." She grumbled as she brought the egg under the water and then submerged her head as she unlatched the locks. She winced, waiting for the loud screeching, but was pleasantly surprised when a soft melody filled her ears instead.

_Come seek us where our voices sound,_   
_We cannot sing above the ground,_   
_And while you're searching ponder this;_   
_We've taken what you'll sorely miss,_   
_An hour long you'll have to look,_   
_And to recover what we took,_   
_But past an hour, the prospect's black,_   
_Too late, it's gone, it won't come back._

Fleur lifted her head from the water with confusion written all over her face. ' _What could zey possibly take?'_ Fleur frowned as she looked around her room and her eyes immediately landed on her leather bound journal that held so many of her deepest secrets. The thought of someone else getting their hands on it was enough to make her face pale and fill her with dread. ' _Per'aps I should find a better 'iding place for eet.'_

/

Hermione entered her room with flushed cheeks, closing the door soundly behind her; now that she was alone she could properly react to her early morning wake up. ' _What the hell was that!? We almost . . . And I . . . I wanted it to happen.'_ Hermione leaned against her door, breathing heavily and her body sparking with excitement when she recalled how it felt to have Fleur's hands and mouth on her bare skin. ' _Get ahold of yourself Granger.'_ Hermione inwardly chided herself. ' _You're turning into Ron.'_

' _But would caving in be so bad?'_ Hermione bit her lower lip as she slid down her door, her eyes getting a far off look in them as she thought back to the blonde once more. It wasn't those moments alone where Fleur's hands were on her that kept her on the hook, it was the sincere smile Fleur gave her when they were alone, how she ran her fingers through Hermione's hair, how the veela kissed her scar and helped her out of the dark hole she found herself in after her encounter with Malfoy. There was definitely more to Fleur than meets the eye and Hermione was becoming completely enamored with the champion. ' _Oh bloody hell . . .'_ Hermione sighed. ' _I really am in trouble aren't I?'_

Without warning her door suddenly burst open sending Hermione toppling over. "Hey!" The prefect cried out, looking up at a grinning Ginerva Weasley.

"What are you doing on the floor Mione?" Ginny laughed at her disheveled friend.

"You knocked me down you git!" Hermione growled as she stood up, pushing the chaser.

Ginny shrugged. "Oops."

"Have you ever heard of knocking? What if I had been getting dressed!?" Hermione huffed.

"Well then I would be one lucky girl." Ginny wiggled her eyebrows, earning her another hard shove. "Okay, okay, sorry Mione. The boys were just driving me mad asking about you." Ginny's face suddenly became serious. "We were worried about you."

"There's no need to be worried." Hermione rubbed the back of her head. "I just needed to get away for a bit."

Ginny raised an eyebrow. "With Fleur?"

"Th-that is totally irrelevant." Hermione blushed making Ginny's grin widen.

"I see. Well, you better come down to see them before they attempt to come up here . . . again."

"Oh merlin." Hermione ran her hand through her hair, trying to untangle it. "Those boys are so dramatic sometimes."

"They really are. You should have seen them sliding down the stairs, it was great." Ginny laughed as they walked into the common room where Harry and Ron promptly shot up from their seats.

"Hey Mione! How are you feeling?" Harry walked up to the brunette with one black eye while Ron sported the same look with a bruised cheek. "You alright?"

Hermione frowned upon seeing the bruises on her friends. "I'm fine Harry, but what in the world happened to you two?"

"We gave Malfoy a good romping." Ron grinned. "You should see him and his goons."

"What!?" Hermione threw her arms up. "How many times do I have to tell you boys to stay out of trouble?"

"Sorry mom." Ron looked down, trying to hide his amused smile.

Ginny crossed her arms, putting her nose up in the air. "He deserved it."

"I'm assuming you both have detention now." Hermione sighed.

"Yeah, but it was worth it." Harry smiled. "It felt bloody good."

"Honestly, what am I going to do with you two?" Hermione tried to sound stern, but couldn't stop her lips from tugging up at the corners; she really was lucky to have best friends that would stick up for her like that.

"Go to breakfast with us?" Ron looked up hopefully. "We're starving."

Hermione just rolled her eyes and complied, heading down to the dining hall as the boys recounted their brawl with Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. When she entered the hall she had to stifle her laughter when she saw the blonde Slytherin sporting two black eyes, resembling a raccoon and his goons didn't look any better. "Don't you think you two overdid it a bit?" Hermione spoke with a raised eyebrow.

"If anything we didn't do enough." Ron shot Malfoy a dirty look which the Slytherin returned in kind.

Hermione shook her head, glancing at the Ravenclaw table to see if she would catch a glimpse of blonde hair, but instead she saw a huge crowd of boys and girls blocking her view. A frown overcame her features at the sight; it would seem Fleur had a huge audience, but why?

"What is going on over there?" She voiced the question burning in her mind.

"You didn't hear?" Ron asked around a mouthful of food. "There's going to be a ball for the tournament!"

"I imagine everyone is flocking to ask Fleur." Ginny scoffed and Hermione looked back to the table, her frown deepening. She felt a flare of jealousy at the crowd clambering for the veela's attention practically begging for a chance to take her to the dance. She tried to push away the feeling, she didn't really have a right to feel possessive of the blonde seeing as they weren't official or anything, but that just made her more upset. "Something wrong Mione?" Ginny asked with a smirk when she saw that look on her friends face.

"Nope." Hermione mumbled as she turned to her food, but was promptly interrupted by someone clearing their throat. "Yes?" Hermione looked up to see a small crowd now surrounding her with a nervous looking Hufflepuff boy with brown hair and light brown eyes standing at the front.

"I-I was just wondering if you would like to go to the dance with me?" Hermione raised an eyebrow and Ginny had to stifle her laughter.

"I um . . ." Hermione tried to find a gentle way to let the boy down.

"She's not interested." Ginny spoke up for her friend, playing the cold mean one for her. "Sorry you blokes."

There was a collective groan in the crowd of boys but some still remained, hopeful Hermione Granger might say yes to them. "Oi!" Ron spoke up, glaring at the boys. "She said she isn't interested! So get lost!"

Hermione shot her friend a grateful look as the remaining crowd dispersed and looked back to the Ravenclaw table, catching a glimpse of Fleur. She felt slightly relieved to see Fleur look thoroughly irritated by the students pestering her. Their eyes met for a brief moment and an understanding passed between them; it was definitely going to be an irritating week.

"Hey Mione." Harry spoke up, pulling Hermione's gaze to the messy haired boy.

"Yes?"

"Do you want to go to the dance with me?" Harry grinned, earning him a bread roll thrown right at his head.

"Piss off!" Hermione scowled, but broke into a smile after; her friends really were ridiculous sometimes.

"Well who do you want to go to the dance with?" Ginny raised a knowing eyebrow while Hermione's cheeks heated up.

"Honestly . . . I don't know." Hermione mumbled into her glass of water.

Ginny just scoffed, digging into her food. "Right."

"Shut up." Hermione grumbled, looking at Fleur one more time before she went back to her breakfast.

/

It had indeed proved to be an annoyingly stressful couple of days; everywhere Hermione went there was someone trying to corner her and ask her to the dance. She was so tired of trying to avoid people that she automatically just started saying 'no' whenever someone was obviously about to approach her; there was no longer any room to be polite.

She let out a sigh as she ascended the steps to Gryffindor tower, but paused when she saw Fleur leaning back on a wall, looking thoroughly annoyed as a random Slytherin with slicked back hair tried to charm her into going to the dance. Hermione felt that awful feeling again in the pit of her stomach when he invaded Fleur's personal space. Their eyes locked and Hermione felt a blush heat up her cheeks at being caught staring so she tried to make a quick escape, but Fleur was faster.

The blonde kicked off the wall, completely ignoring the boy to go after the Gryffindor and before Hermione could get too far she grabbed her by her elbow and pulled her into a nearby broom closet.

"Fleur." Hermione did her best to protest, but found it hard to do with the blonde smiling at her.

"Je suis désolé. I just figured zere would be no ozer way for us to talk wizout someone constantly interrupting."

"Yeah, this dance is making everyone go bonkers." Hermione sighed.

"Oui, I must agree." Fleur grumbled, glaring at the closet door where she knew there would be students trying to get her attention; it was already bad enough being a veela, but now with a looming ball her peers were relentless.

Hermione eyed the blonde in front of her carefully, her own thoughts drifting back to the dance, and her insecurities nagging at her. "So . . . do you have anyone you want to go with?"

The question caught the veela off guard, filling her with a horrible dread at the implications of what Hermione was asking. Was she really ready to take the next step with the young prodigy? "Not particularly." Fleur looked back to Hermione, trying to keep her face neutral even though she felt her veela thrashing around inside of her, protesting her answer. "What about you?"

"Uh . . ." Hermione looked down, feeling her stomach drop at the champions reply. "Not really."

Fleur just nodded her head, rocking back on her heels as she looked off to the side. ' _She wants me to ask 'er . . . Eef I do zat would definitely change some . . . zings. But eef she wants to go wiz me wouldn't she ask 'erself?'_ Fleur stood there as the awkward silence enveloped them, she was entirely perplexed and unsure of what to do which was so rare for her. A part of her really wanted to ask the Gryffindor before someone else tried to take her right under nose, but another part was holding her back, telling her to wait. ' _She looks disappointed . . .'_ Fleur frowned as she observed the quiet girl in front of her. Seeing Hermione look so downtrodden tugged at the veela's heart for reasons she didn't want to really think about; all she knew was she didn't want to see Hermione look like that ever again. ' _Eef I do ask 'er zere ees no way I am asking 'er een some stuffy closet . . .'_ The veela inside of her seemed to at least agree with that thought.

"I um, need to get going." Hermione ran a hand through her hair. "Good luck with everything." Hermione tried to brush past the blonde, but Fleur grabbed her arm and twirled her around, pressing her lips to Hermione's.

Hermione couldn't help but to cave in to those soft pink lips that had been the only thing she really thought about the last couple days. She hated how addicted she was to Fleur's kiss and how easily she gave in, but it felt so good to do so.

Fleur pulled away with a dreamy sigh, smiling at the prefect who seemed to be in her own world. "Don't say yes to anyone."

Hermione furrowed her brow, even more confused. Was this Fleur's way of asking her? "Why?"

"Just . . ." Fleur chewed on her lower lip. "Don't."

Hermione felt a flutter in her chest at the intense look Fleur gave her, willing her not to go with anyone else. ' _Maybe she will ask me after all.' "_ Okay." Hermione nodded, making a bright smile light up Fleur's face.

"Bon."

"I really do need to get going." Hermione took a step back, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I'll see you around." Hermione smiled, leaving a thoughtful veela in her wake.

/

' _So 'ow do I ask 'er?'_ Fleur thought to herself as she walked into the Beuxbatons carriage. She wasn't used to asking people out on a date let alone a ball; this definitely was not her forte. She felt nervous for so many reasons. What did this mean if she took Hermione? Would that make her her girlfriend? She hadn't been serious with anyone for a very long time and she wasn't sure if she was ready for such a thing and everything it required of her. It was never supposed to go this far. She was never supposed to develop feelings for Hermione, but she did and she had no idea how to handle that and quite frankly it terrified her. The guilt gnawing at her really didn't help either. Every time Hermione looked at her now she was reminded of the horrible bet she had made at the beginning of the year without thinking of what the golden girl had been through, all she had suffered, and all she had endured. How could she possibly approach Hermione and give things an honest go when she had tainted the relationship before it even began?

During her quiet musings Fleur had wandered down the halls and bumped into someone; she turned to glare at them but stopped when she saw it was her little sister. " _ **Sorry."**_ Fleur mumbled and went to go her way.

" _ **Is everything okay?"**_ Gabrielle's voice halted the older veela in her steps. Hermione Granger's words had bothered Gabrielle for a while now; perhaps she had been too hard on her sister. She had had half a mind to talk to her, but never had the chance, but seeing Fleur so out of it, wandering the halls spurred her into action.

" _ **I don't know."**_ Fleur sighed, answering truthfully.

" _ **Do you . . ."**_ Gabrielle shifted nervously from foot to foot; when had it become so hard to interact with Fleur? " _ **Do you want to talk about it?"**_

Fleur had an unreadable expression on her face as she eyed her little sister; it wasn't like Gabrielle to try to talk to her so she really had no idea how to react.

" _ **Never mind."**_ Gabrielle grumbled when it became too awkward for her, she should have known better than to try to reach out to her sister.

" _ **Wait."**_ Fleur's words made Gabrielle stop from leaving. Hermione had told her she should speak with her little sister and she had been too cowardly to do so thus far, but now seemed like the perfect opportunity to give it a try and possibly lighten the load of her burden. " _ **I'm sorry, you just caught me by surprise. I do want to talk."**_

" _ **Alright."**_ Gabrielle nodded and they headed to the youngest Delacour's room.

When Fleur entered she looked around, curious as to how her sibling would decorate her room. There were a couple paintings on her wall, but what really drew her attention were some seashells sitting on her desk. A fond smile crossed Fleur's face as she approached the desk and picked up a swirling blue and white one. " _ **I didn't know you kept these."**_ Fleur glanced over to Gabrielle watching her with a little apprehension swimming in her sapphire orbs.

" _ **Playing on the beach and collecting shells was one of my favorite times."**_ Gabrielle spoke softly, looking off to the side to avoid the sad look Fleur gave her.

" _ **Me too."**_ Fleur agreed as she gently placed the shell back down and took a seat.

" _ **So um . . ."**_ Gabrielle cleared her throat. " _ **What's going on?"**_

Fleur let out a sigh, her mind being brought back to Hermione as she played with the hem of her dress. " _ **I think Hermione wants me to ask her to the dance."**_

" _ **And that's . . . a bad thing?"**_ Gabrielle raised an eyebrow, clearly confused as to what the problem was.

" _ **Yes, I mean . . ."**_ Fleur grumbled and rested her head on her sister's desk. " _ **No . . . I don't know."**_

" _ **You're not making much sense Fleur."**_

" _ **I know, it's just . . . complicated Gabrielle."**_

" _ **It's always complicated when it comes to you."**_ Gabrielle smirked making her sister let out a little laugh and filling her with ease. Fleur thought it would be so hard to talk to her sibling again, but she forgot how easily they fell into conversation and how Gabrielle could lift her spirits.

" _ **Fair enough."**_ Fleur sat up, running a hand through her hair. " _ **If I tell you, do you promise not to tell anyone?"**_

" _ **I promise."**_

" _ **Well . . ."**_ Fleur licked her lips as her eyes drifted off. " _ **I think I'm starting to like her and I'm scared . . ."**_

" _ **Scared?"**_ Gabrielle raised an eyebrow. " _ **Why?"**_

Fleur gripped her dress tightly, looking down as she worked up the courage to tell her sister the truth. Something she had kept hidden from her for so long, the very thing that made the two drift apart, but if she didn't tell Gabrielle now how could they possibly begin to mend their broken relationship without addressing what shattered it in the first place? It was now or never. If Hermione was brave enough to tell her about her past then she could at least tell her little sister about hers in hopes of fixing things. " _ **Do you remember when I started dating Thomas . . . my first boyfriend?"**_

Gabrielle furrowed her brow in confusion, what did her first boyfriend have to do with this? " _ **Yes, we stopped talking around that time, but I remember."**_

" _ **He's part of the reason why we stopped talking . . ."**_

Gabrielle started to get a sense that the boy changed her sister and she did not like where this is going. " _ **What did he do?"**_ Gabrielle growled.

" _ **He . . ."**_ Fleur paused for a moment, trying to collect herself. " _ **I was so in love with him . . ."**_

_-Flashback-_

Fleur was entering her fifth year at Beuxbatons and she was so pleased to finally have her first real boyfriend; his name was Thomas and he went to another school or used to, he had just graduated and was a couple years older. They had met a couple months before in a park when Fleur was drawing and a football landed in front of her, almost hitting her right in the side. She had looked up when she heard an apology and her breath caught in her throat when she looked up to see a spitting image of Adonis standing right in front of her. He was tan, well-toned, tall with thick blonde locks, deep green eyes that pulled her in right away, and a smile that made her weak in the knees. It was love at first sight and they started dating soon after their fateful encounter.

They had been dating for a couple months when he had become insistent that they finally take the next step. She had been hesitant, but he finally confessed that he loved her and just wanted to be as close to her as possible. That summer Fleur had finally caved in and lost her virginity to the boy of her dreams.

She walked down the hallways on her first day of school feeling light as a feather, not noticing the way people were looking at her or sniggering as she passed. It wasn't until she reached her first class of the day and someone coughed out "slut" as she walked by that she realized something was amuck.

Fleur furrowed her brow in confusion, surely they couldn't be talking about her. She brushed off the comment and took her seat getting lost in her own daydreams when she heard the sniggering and noticed the looks she was receiving.

She opened her book, her cheeks starting to heat up as she felt a wave of doubt wash over her, suddenly feeling very self-conscious by all the glares and smirks her classmates were sending her.

" _ **Hey there Fleur."**_ Veronique, a girl she barely knew at the time, smiled as she took a seat next to the veela.

" _ **Hey . . "**_ Fleur responded absentmindedly as she looked around at her classmates. Today was very odd indeed, not only were everyone's eyes glued to her, but the infamously deviant Veronique decided to sit next to her.

" _ **So . . ." Veronique leaned in, lowering her voice. "I hear you finally took the plunge and fucked Thomas."**_ Veronique grinned and Fleur immediately paled.

" _ **What? H-how did you hear about that?"**_

Veronique furrowed her brow in confusion. _**"It's all anyone can talk about . . . I thought that you knew."**_

Fleur looked absolutely mortified. _**"How did everyone find out?"**_

" _ **Didn't you tell your friends or something?"**_

Fleur just shook her head, a horrible feeling filling her gut at this information; she hadn't told a soul, not even her little sister. _**"No . . . I didn't say a word . . ."**_

" _ **Oh . . ."**_ Veronique spoke quietly, realization starting to dawn on her. _**"Well, I wouldn't worry too much about it."**_ The raven-haired girl tried to put on her best reassuring smile, but it did little to calm the veela's nerves.

" _ **Did he . . .?"**_ Fleur looked down, biting her lower lip. Thomas wouldn't tell anyone, would he? This had to be a misunderstanding, there was no way the sweet boy she had fallen for would ever betray her like that.

" _ **I don't know."**_ Veronique frowned, suddenly feeling slightly bad for the blonde.

Another girl walked by, mumbling 'slut' and made Fleur duck her head as tears pricked at her eyes, but Veronique was quick to stand up. _**"What was that?"**_ Veronique growled.

" _ **I-I wasn't talking about you Veronique, I was-"**_

" _ **Oh, I know what you were saying."**_ The dark-haired witch growled, her green eyes getting a dangerous glint in them. _**"Why don't you get lost?"**_

The girl quickly scurried away and Veronique took a seat next to the veela who was trying to hold back her tears. _**"Don't listen to them."**_ Veronique scoffed. _**"They're all a bunch of goody goodies."**_

" _ **I need to go."**_ Fleur blurted out, rushing out of the classroom before anyone else could say something to her. She escaped the school and ran to Thomas' house, desperate for answers as to why anyone would possibly know what they did. She banged on his door insistently until he finally answered clad in only a towel at his waist.

" _ **Fleur?"**_ He asked, looking behind his shoulder before he turned back to the blonde. _**"What are you doing here?"**_

" _ **Did you tell anyone about what we did . . .?"**_ Fleur chewed on her lower lip, rubbing her arm nervously.

" _ **Well, yeah."**_ He said it so casually Fleur was taken aback. _**"What's the big deal?"**_

" _ **What's the big deal?"**_ Fleur shoved the boy, her anger starting to finally flare. _**"The whole school knows."**_

" _ **Don't get all riled up."**_ He rolled his eyes. _**"I bagged the hottest girl at Beuxbatons, you can't expect me to not brag."**_

Fleur clenched her fists at how arrogant he was acting, she couldn't believe this was the same guy she gave her virginity to. _**"I'm not something to brag about."**_

" _ **Come on Fleur-"**_

" _ **Thomas?"**_ A female voice in the background called out and a striking red-head with soft brown eyes clad in only a silk robe came walking up behind the blonde boy, running her hand over his muscular chest. _**"Who's this?"**_

" _ **N-no one."**_ He quickly tried to cover for himself. _**"Just some girl that got lost."**_

" _ **What?"**_ Fleur felt her heart shred into tiny pieces at his easy dismissal.

The red-head eyed the blonde standing at the door, assessing the threat, but obviously Fleur wasn't one because she just shrugged and gave the boy a kiss on the cheek. _**"Well hurry up and send the little girl on her way."**_

He just nodded his head while the red-head stalked off elsewhere, leaving Fleur to stand there with her jaw clenched and her heart lying on his front porch. _**"Just . . . some girl?"**_ Fleur asked with tears in her eyes. _**"You said you loved me."**_

" _ **Oh Fleur."**_ He sighed, running a hand through his thick locks. _**"I would have said anything to get in your pants. Don't take it personal."**_

" _ **Don't take it personal!?"**_ Fleur cried out, shoving him once more. _**"I gave you my virginity!"**_

" _ **Keep your voice down."**_ He hissed, looking around to see if any neighbors were listening. _**"Look, we had fun and lets leave it at that alright? I don't need you coming here and making trouble."**_

Fleur was in utter shock at how he acted and before she could say anything more he slammed the door in her face. It wasn't until she found herself walking back to her school that she registered the tears that finally started rolling down her cheeks. The guy she was head over heels in love with just told her she was basically nothing . . . he used her and was currently with another older woman . . . probably having sex. She had to bite back a sob at that last thought.

She spent the entire night locked in her room, crying into her pillow, the ache in her chest tearing her to pieces. She didn't know how she could possibly move on from this. How was she supposed to go to class with all those girls snickering at her and calling her a slut? Did sleeping with one guy really make her one?

She tried to play sick the next day, but the school nurse wasn't buying it and made her go to class anyways. The girls kept shooting her nasty looks for weeks and she was suddenly labeled the school slut, because she was foolish enough to trust someone she thought loved her. She got in the habit of walking down the halls with her head down, trying to avoid everyone's stares; she was already dealing with so much, she didn't need to see the judgmental look on everyone's faces.

" _ **Hey there Fleur!"**_ That girl Veronique suddenly popped up again, standing next to her. _**"How are you feeling?"**_

" _ **Not so good."**_ Fleur grumbled as she leaned against a wall.

" _ **Don't worry about all these stupid bitches."**_ Veronique rolled her eyes. _**"They're all boring sheep anyways, but you my friend are far more interesting."**_

" _ **Me?"**_ Fleur scoffed. _**"Interesting?"**_

" _ **Yeah, it's nice not being the only virgin in our grade."**_ Veronique grinned. _**"We can swap stories."**_

" _ **I only slept with one guy . . ."**_ Fleur mumbled, tears pricking at her eyes. _**"And he turned out to be nothing like I thought he was."**_

" _ **They never are what you think they are."**_ Veronique rolled her eyes. _**"Don't let yourself become a victim to scum like that."**_

" _ **How?"**_ Fleur choked out.

A smirk overcame Veronique's face. _**"I'm so glad you asked."**_

_-End Flashback-_

" _ **Veronique helped me cope with everything . . . taught me how to not get too attached . . taught me how to make it all a fun game . . . I became cold and distant, disassociated myself from everything, including you . . . I thought it was for the best, it's safe . . ."**_ Fleur finally looked up at her little sister who had so many emotions rolling off of her Fleur was having a hard time depicting which one was most prominent. " _ **I'm so sorry Gabrielle . . . I should have never distanced myself from you."**_

" _ **Don't apologize."**_ Gabrielle crossed the room, pulling her older sister into a tight hug. " _ **I swear if I see that boy I'll disembowel him myself."**_ She growled.

" _ **That's not necessary."**_ Fleur pulled away with a sad smile. " _ **Thanks anyways though . . ."**_

" _ **So this is why you are scared with Hermione?"**_ Gabrielle sat down at the edge of her desk, watching her older sibling with a new outlook. Fleur just nodded her head in response, looking down. " _ **Hermione is nothing like that cretin Fleur . . ."**_ Gabrielle shook her head. " _ **She actually seems to care quite a lot about you unlike those other tools you have messed around with."**_

" _ **It doesn't make it any less terrifying . . ."**_ Fleur grumbled. " _ **And her being so nice and caring makes it all so much worse . . ."**_

Gabrielle furrowed her brow in confusion. " _ **Worse? How does it make anything worse?"**_

" _ **I . . ."**_ Fleur choked for a minute on what she was going to say, mentally preparing herself for her sister's reaction. " _ **At the beginning of the year . . . I made a bet with Veronique that I could take Hermione's virginity by the third task . . ."**_

" _ **You what!?"**_ Gabrielle stood up from the desk, anger written all of her face.

Fleur just ducked her head, shame filling her gut at her admission. " _ **I know it's horrible . . . It makes me even worse than Thomas . . . I don't know what I was thinking . . . I've hurt so many people just to save myself and now . . . Hermione has really opened up to me and I feel horrible . . . she doesn't deserve this. She's so perfect and amazing and here I am pretending to be something I'm not, tricking her into liking me . . . "**_

Gabrielle watched her sister for a moment, a new reality dawning on her brought on by her siblings words. " _ **You're in love with her."**_

" _ **W-what!?"**_ It was Fleur's turn to look completely shocked. " _ **N-no, I-"**_

Gabrielle smiled at seeing how flustered her sister had become. " _ **You are and I definitely approve even though I don't approve of the reasons why you started talking to her."**_

" _ **I don't need approval."**_ Fleur grumbled.

" _ **Right."**_ Gabrielle scoffed. " _ **Well you can keep living in your fantasy world where you're not in love with Hermione Granger, but if you care about her even a little bit you should call off the bet and tell Hermione the truth."**_

" _ **If I told her the truth . . ."**_ Fleur bit her lower lip, dread filling her gut at just the thought. " _ **If she knew who I really was, what I have done . . . she would never talk to me again."**_

" _ **You don't know that."**_ Gabrielle sighed sadly, placing a hand on her distraught sister's shoulder. " _ **But she deserves to know and you should tell her how you feel."**_

" _ **That's dangerous."**_ Fleur mumbled. " _ **It's better this way."**_

Gabrielle rolled her eyes. " _ **Do you really believe that or is that Veronique talking?"**_

" _ **Both?"**_ Fleur sighed as she ran a hand through her hair. " _ **It's better to keep myself protected from other people than to be hurt like that again . . ."**_

" _ **Perhaps . . ."**_ Gabrielle tried to choose her words carefully, but she knew this needed to be said. _ **"you don't need to be protecting yourself from people like Hermione and should be more wary of Veronique."**_

Fleur looked up at her sister, confusion and uncertainty swimming through her bright blue eyes. " _ **But she's helped me through so much."**_

" _ **She's a snake in the grass Fleur . . . stop drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die . . . you're only hurting yourself at this point and deep down you know Veronique is turning you into something you're not."**_

Fleur was beyond shocked at the depth her sister was capable of, her words hit her like a ton of bricks. " _ **When did you get so deep and philosophical?"**_

Gabrielle just scoffed and smiled at the question. " _ **Oh please, I've always been the witty one."**_

" _ **So that's why I got all the good looks, because you hogged all the brains."**_ Fleur smirked, earning her a whack in the arm from her little sister. She had a long road ahead of her, but having Gabrielle back in her life, laughing and joking with her again was a good start.

/

Later that night Fleur laid in her bed, mulling over her siblings words and everything she had revealed. She knew what she was doing was wrong and the guilt was slowly starting to kill her; how could keep going the way she was going? She eyed her journal for a moment, her gut twisting at the thought of handing it over to her raven-haired friend. There was so much in that journal, even more than just the Thomas situation where she poured her heart out; there were conquests in there and then her real thoughts of those who surrounded her . . . including Veronique. If that journal got out it could completely ruin her.

Then she thought back to Hermione and everything she had revealed to her; how open and trusting the Gryffindor was with her when she was so undeserving. The least she could do was end the bet and she had an idea as to how she could get around the journal.

/

Veronique was sitting in her room, inhaling the pixie dust from her necklace when Fleur suddenly barged in with a leather bound journal in hand.

" _ **You come by for some fun?"**_ Veronique smirked up at the blonde who stood stiffly in front of her.

Fleur seemed to grimace at the thought and shook her head. " _ **No. I came to give you my journal. I give up, I don't want to do the bet anymore."**_

Veronique raised an eyebrow as Fleur dropped the leather journal onto her bed, the veela didn't typically give up so easily. " _ **Is that so?"**_

" _ **I transferred the money to your account and there's my journal."**_

" _ **So, the prude wouldn't put out huh?"**_ Veronique laughed. " _ **I knew it."**_

" _ **Don't call her that."**_ Fleur grumbled, her temper already starting to rise. " _ **I just don't want to do this anymore . . . it's wrong."**_

Veronique rolled her eyes. _**"Don't tell me little miss goody two shoes suddenly made you grow a conscience."**_

" _ **Actually, it was Gabrielle who made me change my mind."**_ Fleur huffed. " _ **And Hermione is a war hero. She doesn't deserve this."**_

" _ **Oh Merlin Fleur, I promise she is no different from anyone else. Don't tell me you really are falling for her innocent act."**_

" _ **Just shut up and take the damn journal."**_ Fleur growled.

" _ **No need to get hostile princess."**_ Veronique smirked up at the blonde. " _ **I'm just looking out for your best interest."**_

For once Fleur really didn't believe her friend. " _ **Right, well if that's all you have to say I have to get working on my task."**_

" _ **Do whatever you want Fleur, but I'm telling you, you're going to regret it if you go after Hermione for real."**_

Fleur chewed on her lower lip for a moment, those words filling her with doubt for moment, but then she shook them off, thinking back to the advice her sister gave her. " _ **I'll take my chances."**_

Veronique felt a pang in her chest at Fleur's words, but kept her face neutral as she waved the veela off and she grabbed the journal, immediately starting to flip through it while Fleur made her exit, but the neutral look fell from her face when she found each page empty, this wasn't the journal she wanted. " _ **Fleur!"**_ Veronique yelled out, glaring at her friend. " _ **This isn't the journal we agreed upon!"**_

Fleur paused at the door, looking back at the raven-haired girl with a grin. " _ **I never said which journal I would give you."**_

Veronique just responded by throwing the journal at the door Fleur narrowly escaped out of and grumbled. " _ **Fucking sneaky veela."**_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so we finally found out about what made Fleur the way she is and how on Earth she became friends with Veronique. Yuck. lol


	18. Of Course Not

Hermione sat in the common room with Ginny, trying to study, but found the task difficult when all she could think about was Fleur. It had been a couple days and the blonde had yet to even try to approach her about going to the Yule Ball. She wasn't one to care about such frivolous things, but Fleur made it seem like she was going to ask her and it didn't seem that was going to happen any time soon. Every time they saw each other Fleur would give her a smile as always, but that was it. No clandestine meetings, no anything. ' _Did I do something wrong?'_

"Oi, space cadet." Ginny waved her hand in front of her friend's face to gain her attention. "You okay? You seem really out of it lately."

"I'm fine." Hermione mumbled, looking off to the side.

Ginny raised an eyebrow at Hermione's behavior, something was definitely bothering her. "Would this perhaps have anything to do with the ball?"

"No." Hermione huffed, answering a little too quickly for the red-head to believe her.

"So she still hasn't asked you eh?" Ginny smirked.

Hermione's cheeks heated up at the question, beyond embarrassed to be caught caring about something so trivial. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh, come off it." Ginny laughed, pushing her friend. "You totally want Fleur to ask you, it's so painfully obvious."

"It's not that obvious." Hermione mumbled, ducking her head.

"Even Ron is starting to notice you're off." Ginny grinned. "If you want to go with her so damn bad why don't you just ask her?"

"And be lumped in with all of her other fan boys and fan girls?" Hermione scoffed. "No thanks."

"I see." Ginny smirked, it would seem Hermione was slowly puling herself out of her denial and finally being at least a little honest with her. "Well maybe throw some hints out there or oh!" Ginny jumped up and down excitedly in her seat. "Get her a nice present for Christmas! That'll put a fire under her arse!"

Hermione let out a groan, slumping back in her chair. "I totally forgot about Christmas . . ." _'I was so wrapped up with this stupid ball that Christmas slipped from my mind. What do I even get someone I just casually snog every now and then? I mean, there's more to us then that . . . right? So I suppose I should get her something.'_

"Well, it's a good thing you have a friend like me to remind you." Ginny puffed out her chest proudly, making Hermione roll her eyes. "Come on, tomorrow we'll go to Hogsmeade and we can find a good present for her! It will be fun! I promise!"

A small smile tugged at the corner of Hermione's lips at the thought of getting Fleur something nice. "I suppose it might be."

/

Fleur was having a similar problem in the carriage, sitting with Odette and Gabrielle; she had wanted to ask Hermione every day to the dance, but every time she thought she worked up the courage dread would fill her gut and she would walk the other way. She hadn't kissed Hermione in days or had any alone time with the golden girl and it was driving her crazy; she was driving herself insane really.

" _ **You are making this entirely too difficult."**_ Gabrielle rolled her eyes when her sister let out a dramatic sigh, plopping back onto her bed. " _ **Just ask her!"**_

" _ **Like one of her fan boys or fan girls?"**_ Fleur scoffed. " _ **No way."**_

" _ **You are so absurd."**_ Gabrielle groaned. " _ **It's so obvious she wants you to ask her."**_

Odette had to hold back her laughter at her friend's theatrics, she really did have it bad. " _ **I must agree with Gabrielle on this one. I think you may be overthinking this just a little."**_

Fleur shot a glare at her friend, scowling at her obvious amusement. She didn't know why it was so difficult to simply ask Hermione to a stupid dance. It was just a lot for her. She would be exposing herself in a way she really didn't know she was ready to do yet, but Hermione would wait for her. She just had to work up the courage and push all her self-doubt down, but that was much easier said than done. The thought of taking the next step with the prodigy was beyond terrifying, casual snogging and sex was something she was great at, but a date was something else entirely. " _ **I just don't know if I'm ready."**_

" _ **Well how about you start by just getting her a nice Christmas present? Then, if the moment feels right you ask her."**_ Odette grinned, pleased when her alpha sat up, seemingly deep in thought.

" _ **I suppose that could work . . ."**_

Odette became excited at the prospect of pushing Fleur in the right direction. _**"We can go tomorrow!"**_

" _ **Where are we going?"**_ Veronique asked as she breezed into the room, immediately making the youngest Delacour bristle.

" _ **We're going shopping for Christmas gifts!"**_ Odette beamed up at the raven-haired girl.

" _ **And you're not invited."**_ Gabrielle glared up at the wicked witch who just rolled her eyes in response.

" _ **Gabrielle."**_ Fleur scolded her sister, giving her a warning look that made the younger girl grumble and lean back in her chair. " _ **You're invited of course."**_

" _ **Thought so."**_ Veronique smirked as she leaned against the wall.

/

The next day Fleur was sporting tight jeans, a white shirt, and a thick black coat with a gray scarf hanging loosely at the sides. It was the first snowfall of winter and she was a little thrilled to see the white substance on the ground, signaling Christmas was drawing near. She felt her veela jumping around excitedly as she walked into shops with her friends, trying to find the perfect gift for the Gryffindor, but every time she saw something it just wasn't good enough.

She was currently browsing in a jewelry store with Veronique eyeing several diamond earrings with Gabrielle and Odette at the opposite side deep in their own conversation. _**"Do you think this will go good with my dress?"**_ The raven-haired girl walked up to the veela, holding a pair of stunning tear drop earrings.

" _ **I don't even know what dress you got for the ball."**_ Fleur replied absentmindedly as she looked through some necklaces.

" _ **Well I got a dark purple one . . . will that go with yours?"**_ Veronique sighed. _**"I didn't even think to ask."**_

" _ **Why would it need to go with my dress?"**_ Fleur raised an eyebrow, looking curiously at her friend who looked just as perplexed as her.

" _ **Well, we're going to the dance together right?"**_

Fleur almost dropped the necklace she was holding at her friends question. " _ **What? We never discussed that."**_

" _ **I thought that was a given."**_ Veronique scoffed. " _ **Now, what color dress are you wearing, because I need to know if I have to go get a different one before it's too late."**_

" _ **Veronique . . . "**_ Fleur pinched the bridge of her nose, irritated that she had to even have this conversation. " _ **I'm not going to the ball with you."**_

It was Veronique's turn to look completely taken aback. " _ **You're joking right?"**_

" _ **No."**_

" _ **Then who are you going with?"**_ Veronique crossed her arms, feeling a little pang of jealousy. She thought that it would be natural for the two to go together, it would be weird if they didn't.

" _ **I . . . I don't know."**_ Fleur blushed, looking back to the necklaces. " _ **I was thinking of asking Hermione."**_

A scowl overcame Veronique's features and she rolled her deep emerald eyes. " _ **You're serious? I thought you were joking about liking her Fleur."**_

" _ **How did the other night come off as a joke to you?"**_

" _ **I just thought you had a lapse in judgement, perhaps you had a seizure or something. I didn't think you actually really liked that girl . . ."**_ Veronique scrunched up her nose. " _ **She's not your type at all."**_

" _ **I don't have a type."**_ Fleur huffed, putting up her nose.

" _ **Well, answer me this Fleur . . ."**_ Veronique raised an eyebrow. _**"If you like her so much, why haven't you just asked her yet?"**_

" _ **It's complicated."**_ Fleur mumbled, fingering a necklace.

Veronique scoffed at the answer. " _ **If you say so, but you are in denial. She's too much of a goody goodie for you."**_

" _ **Must you always be so insufferable?"**_ Fleur grumbled. " _ **And she's not a goody goodie. She's . . ."**_ Fleur trailed off as a certain necklace caught her eye, it was a silver hollow heart shaped by vines that looked more like a cage with a red stone inside sitting next to a bright blue one. It reminded her of her own tortured heart and their time together at the lake with their inner aura's reflecting in the water, this necklace was perfect.

" _ **Oh Merlin . . . please don't tell me I have been out shopping for Hermione Granger."**_ Veronique spat out when she saw how Fleur looked at a necklace.

Fleur shot Veronique a glare out of the corner of her eye, hoping to silence the raven-haired girl who seemed thoroughly irritated at this revelation.

" _ **I have haven't I?"**_ Veronique scowled. " _ **Well, I think I have had enough of this sickly sweet idiocracy today. Let me know when you come to your senses."**_ Veronique growled as she exited the shop, pushing the door open with a hard shove. She stalked towards the carriage and had to hide her glare when she saw Hermione Granger walking with her red-headed friend down the way, looking into shops. ' _Zat girl ees ruining everyzing.'_ Veronique thought to herself with a growl, brushing past the pair without so much as a second glance.

/

"Well she seemed to be in a right foul mood." Ginny raised an eyebrow at the raven-haired girl practically stomping up to the carriage. "Wonder what that was about."

"Who knows." Hermione replied, not really paying attention as they walked into the book store.

"I thought we were shopping for Fleur." Ginny laughed when they walked into Hermione's favorite store, making the brunette look at her guiltily.

"It's just a little detour."

"Mhmm." Ginny laughed. "I suppose I can see if they have any books on quidditch while you enjoy your little . . . detour."

Hermione just beamed at the chaser who proceeded to roll her eyes and walked off to go her own way.

Her amber eyes scanned the rows of books, taking in the smell of old and new books, it would forever be her favorite scent. She walked through the isles, browsing titles, but at the end of the row something caught her eye that made her pause in her steps. It was a section for quills . . .more specifically ones for art. Her heart jumped excitedly in her chest as she looked at the rows of feather quills, but her eyes landed on one in particular. She read the description below and her eyes widened. ' _A quill that replenishes color on its own and switches color at the artists will . . . it's perfect!'_

Hermione hastily grabbed the utensil and went on a new mission to find a good sketch book when she bumped into someone quite muscular and taller than her.

"I'm sorry Hermioninny." Viktor quickly picked up the quill she dropped, handing it back to the flustered bookworm. "I did not see you there."

"H-hey Viktor." Hermione blushed as she accepted the quill from the seeker now looking at the utensil curiously. "It's fine. I wasn't watching where I was going."

His dark eyes looked back up to her wide amber ones with a smile on his face. "I didn't know you draw."

"I uh . . ." Hermione felt her blush increase tenfold. "I don't. It's a gift for . . ." She chewed on her lower lip for a moment, struggling with what word to use. "A friend."

"I see." He nodded his head. "So you are doing some Christmas shopping too?"

"Yeah." Hermione nodded her head, looking off to the side.

They stood in awkward silence for a moment as Viktor seemed to wrestle with himself about something, working up the courage to ask a question that had been burning in his mind for a week. "Listen Hermio . . . Hermione." He smiled, really proud that he finally said the name right. "I have been vanting to ask you something . . ."

Hermione looked back to the Bulgarian, completely taken aback by the fact he actually said her name correctly. "Yes?"

"I vas vondering . . . I mean hoping if you vould maybe . . ." He shifted from foot to foot nervously and realization dawned on Hermione of what he was about to ask her. She felt her gut fill with guilt when she realized she would have to turn him down even though he was putting himself out there for her, something Fleur had yet to do.

Viktor let out a sigh, chiding himself for acting like a school boy in front of Hermione Granger, he just needed to ask. "Vill you go to the dance vith me?"

"Oh Viktor . . . I . . ." Hermione stuttered, frantically trying to come up with a way to let him down as gently as possible. "I don-"

"There you are!" Ginny grinned over at Hermione, saving the brunette without realizing she was. "Did you find a first edition of Hogwarts: A History?"

"No, I was just talking with Viktor." Hermione nodded her head in the seeker's direction, making Ginny's grin widen.

"Oh, hey there Viktor! I do so hope Hermione wasn't boring you too much." Ginny laughed as she slung an arm around her friend, making Hermione scowl.

"No, not at all." Viktor smiled, keeping his eyes on the bookworm. "I vas just asking her a question."

"Oh?" Ginny raised a curious eyebrow, looking from Viktor to her clearly flustered friend. "What would that be?"

"Nothing that needs answering now." Viktor smiled reassuringly at Hermione who seemed quite uncomfortable. "Anyvays, I vill let you two get back to your shopping, I vouldn't vant to be the one boring you." He winked at the red-head.

"Pish posh! Viktor Krum? Boring?" Ginny waved off his comment. "Why don't you join us for a drink at The Three Broomsticks?"

Hermione glared at her friend out of the corner of her eye, Ginny could be such an opportunist sometimes; she was in no way fooling her. She was just trying to get in with a quidditch star to help boost her chances to get onto a good team when she graduated.

"I vould love to." Viktor beamed, but faltered when he saw the look on Hermione's face. "That is if you don't mind Hermione."

Hermione snapped out of her glare almost immediately when she heard Viktor sound a bit unsure. "No, no. It's totally fine." Hermione waved off the question. "I just need to grab one more thing here and we can go."

Viktor and Ginny both seemed pleased with the answer and let Hermione finish her shopping while they got into an animated conversation about quidditch.

It didn't take Hermione long to find a giant sketch pad with hopefully enough space to fill all of Fleur's new projects. She eyed Viktor as she headed to the counter to pay, trying to push down the apprehensive feeling at hanging out with the seeker when she had no intention of going to the dance with him; she would hate to lead him on, but she would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy his company. Viktor was a nice enough guy and she was getting to the point where she considered him something like a friend.

"All done." Hermione smiled as she approached the pair, tucking her presents into a bag, and they headed out of the shop.

/

Fleur was heading out of the shop herself, trying to ignore Veronique's biting words as she fingered the necklace in her pocket. She paused in her steps and felt a scowl overcome her face when she looked across the way and saw Hermione Granger walking out of the book shop with Viktor Krum and her friend Ginny. _'Zat damned Bulgarian ees at eet again.' The_ veela inside of her thrashed around, positively seething, when she took note of their comfortable proximity.

" _ **What's wrong Fleur?"**_ Odette frowned when she could feel the waves of irritation rolling off of her alpha, making her look where Fleur's eyes were glued. " _ **Oh . . ."**_

" _ **That Bulgarian is really pushing it."**_ Fleur grumbled and Gabrielle couldn't help but roll her eyes.

" _ **Instead of getting all huffy, how about we join them?"**_

Fleur pushed her nose into the air. _**"As if I would spend more time than necessary with that brute."**_

" _ **Come on, you're being stupid."**_ Gabrielle laughed as she grabbed her sister by the elbow and dragged her into The Three Broomsticks with an amused Odette in tow.

"Oi! Look who it is!" Ginny grinned, waving at the girls as they walked into the bar, looking around for a moment until their eyes landed on the unlikely trio. "We should invite them to sit with us." Ginny waved the Beuxbatons students over without anyone else's approval.

Viktor tried to hide his grimace in his drink while Hermione moved her bag to be a little more hidden as the veelas strode over to their table and took a seat. "Bonjour." Odette smiled as she sat down next to Viktor with Gabrielle right next to her, leaving the only space available next to Hermione.

Hermione had watched Fleur from the moment she walked into the pub, how she glided over to them up until she stood at the end of the table. Their eyes locked while everyone got situated, it still amazed her how the blonde could draw her in so effortlessly. It had only been a couple days since they had conversed, but it felt like an eternity to the Gryffindor. Little did she know that beneath the surface of Fleur's calms exterior she was nervous; she suddenly felt like a school girl with a silly crush as she looked into those golden eyes that made her swoon. She had been avoiding Hermione for a reason. It had been so easy to talk with the brunette with the bet as a safeguard, but now that it was done with she felt so bare underneath Hermione's probing gaze.

Gabrielle cleared her throat, breaking the two from their staring contest that left Viktor scowling and Fleur quietly took a seat next to Hermione, shifting somewhat awkwardly, leaving Hermione completely perplexed as to why Fleur was acting differently. "I don't zink we 'ave been properly introduced." Gabrielle broke the tension, reaching her hand across to Ginny. "I am Gabrielle, Fleur's little sister."

Hermione was so caught up in Fleur that she didn't realize Fleur was actually hanging out with her little sister and perked up almost immediately. She shot the champion a smile, so beyond happy that she had seemingly taken her advice and had started to talk with her sibling.

Fleur felt her heart melt at their silent understanding and just shrugged in response, her own lips tugging into a smile at the look Hermione gave her. She felt her nerves calm at the easy smile on the brunettes face and felt almost all the irritation leave her by just sitting next to the brunette she had longed to see for the last couple of days. Almost.

"I'm Viktor." Viktor spoke as he politely took Fleur's sister's hand and shook it. Dark eyes glanced at the other champion out of the corner of his eye before he went back to his drink, becoming more quiet than usual.

"What are you doing out een 'Ogsmeade?" Odette smiled. "Shopping?"

"Yeah." Ginny nodded her head. "Hermione has been going bonkers trying to buy a present for OW!" Ginny cried out when Hermione stomped on her foot, giving her a meaningful look that made the rest of the table smirk except for Viktor.

"For?" Fleur raised an eyebrow, looking over at a now blushing Hermione Granger.

"Just got something for Harry and Ron." Hermione mumbled while Ginny glared at her.

"Fleur 'as been much ze same." Gabrielle spoke up, now making Fleur send her a dangerous look that made her little sister want to laugh. "What are we going to do wiz zese girls?"

"I don't bloody know." Ginny laughed and both Hermione and Fleur squirmed uncomfortably in their seats; it would seem everyone else at the table was enjoying poking fun at the pair who was so oblivious.

Viktor gulped down the rest of his drink, suddenly feeling very out of place. "I really must be going. It vas very nice to meet you." He smiled at Gabrielle and Odette, completely ignoring a smug looking Fleur. "Thank you for the drink." He looked back to Hermione with a smile that made the smug look drop from Fleur's face. "I vill see you around Hermione."

Fleur instinctively grabbed Hermione's knee under the table, making the brunette blush a darker red as Viktor left the pub. ' _Good. Get lost.'_ Fleur thought to herself with a growl, completely forgetting her nerves while Hermione looked down to her knee under the table.

"Everything okay Fleur?" Ginny smirked at the frowning champion who promptly wiped the scowl from her face when she was caught.

"Oui." Fleur nodded, looking over at Hermione's blushing face, making her veela purr its approval of the contact and the brunette's reaction. "Just lost een my own zoughts." Fleur put on her best smile as her hand ran up Hermione's thigh, making the prodigy squirm. She let her hand linger for a moment longer before she retracted it to grab Hermione's glass and take a drink without much thought as to what she was doing, making the red-head raise an eyebrow.

"You two are quite comfortable together eh?" Ginny grinned, but jumped when she felt a hard kick to her shin.

"Stop kicking me!" Ginny cried out, kicking Hermione back, but her aim was off and hit Fleur instead, making the veela just about knock over the glass of butterbeer when she jumped from the painful impact.

"Zat was me." Fleur grumbled, glaring at the chaser.

Hermione couldn't help but smirk when she saw Ginny's face pale at the dangerous look in Fleur's bright blue orbs. "Serves you right."

/

The girls spent the rest of the afternoon drinking and enjoying each other's company, falling into easy conversation. Even though everyone got along and Fleur seemed to relax a bit Hermione got the sense that there was something wrong with the other girl. When Fleur was at her most relaxed state she still seemed kind of stiff and off; it made no sense at all.

' _Did I do something wrong?'_ Hermione thought once again with a frown and furrowed brow, glancing back at Fleur as they all walked back to the castle. Fleur was hanging back with her sister, her hand in her pocket, seeming to play with something while Gabrielle spoke to her quietly.

" _ **You're acting weird."**_ Gabrielle hissed to Fleur.

Fleur scowled, glaring over at her sister for a moment before she turned her attention back to Hermione who quickly snapped her head to look back in front of her. " _ **I'm not acting weird."**_ Fleur replied with a huff. " _ **I'm just . . ."**_

" _ **Nervous, I know."**_ Gabrielle scoffed. " _ **But you have wooed enough people that this should all be natural and easy for you by now."**_

Fleur let out a soft groan. " _ **Don't you think I know that? It's just . . . different this time."**_

A small smile tugged at Gabrielle's lips at Fleur's words. " _ **Yeah, you're not in love with her at all."**_

Fleur stiffened at her sister's statement, lightly pushing the younger blonde. " _ **Shut up."**_

/

When they got to the carriage Hermione watched as the girls said their goodbyes, nervously fidgeting with her hands while she steeled her courage. "Hey Fleur." She spoke quietly, gently tugging Fleur's hand to step back for a moment while the three girls secretly gave them a knowing look.

Fleur shuffled a little nervously, shifting her gaze to her friends who seemed too preoccupied to notice the two conversing. "Oui?"

"I was um just wondering . . ." Hermione shifted her eyes to the side, avoiding Fleur's curious gaze.

' _Ees she going to actually take ze stress off of me and ask me to ze ball?'_ Fleur thought hopefully to herself, it would save her so much trouble if Hermione was the brave one of the pair and took the plunge.

"Is everything okay?"

Fleur felt her heart drop at the question; it would seem Hermione was not going to be the brave one. "Everyzing is fine." Fleur sighed.

"You just seem kind of off." Hermione pressed, glancing back to their friends to make sure they were staying out of their business.

"I 'ave just been preoccupied wiz ze task ees all." Fleur lied through her teeth. "I am sure you understand."

"Y-yeah." Hermione nodded her head and gulped uneasily as she put on a fake smile. "I understand."

Fleur gave Hermione a small smile in return, standing there as an uncomfortable silence enveloped them. "I will see you een class right?" Fleur chewed on her lower lip nervously; she was completely blowing it and she knew it. It was like she was watching someone else in her body say all the wrong things while she was inside screaming to just ask the brunette or to just grab her and kiss her like she so wanted to.

"Yeah, of course." Hermione nodded her head as she took a step back. "Have a good night." Hermione smiled lopsidedly at Fleur, waving to Odette and Gabrielle as she trudged back up to the castle through the thick snow.

A collective sigh could be heard from both Gabrielle and Odette as they entered the warmth the carriage provided. " _ **You're totally blowing it."**_ Gabrielle shook her head.

" _ **I know!"**_ Fleur whined as they entered her room and she fell onto her bed face first, burying her nose into her pillow.

" _ **Do you want me to ask her for you?"**_ Odette laughed, causing Fleur to pick up her head and glare at the red-head.

" _ **No, I'll do it."**_

Gabrielle raised an amused eyebrow. " _ **When?"**_

Fleur sighed as she sat up in her bed, pulling out the necklace from her jacket, a smile forming on her face as she looked at it. " _ **Christmas."**_

/

"That was so painful to watch." Ginny laughed as they entered the common room, making Hermione scowl.

"Shut up Gin."

"Oh, come on Mione." Ginny grinned. "Don't be like that."

"I just don't get it." Hermione groaned as she sat down on the couch. "She's acting so weird."

"Because she's nervous you idiot!" Ginny grinned as she flicked Hermione's nose, making the prefect scrunch up her face.

"Fleur? Nervous? And did YOU just call ME an idiot?"

"Yes." Ginny smirked. "To both. You really are horrible sometimes at observing people."

"I am not." Hermione crossed her arms and Ginny gave her an incredulous look. "Okay, maybe a little, but still . . ."

"I never thought I would see the day where I would have to tell you to be patient." Ginny scoffed. "But be patient. It's obvious Fleur is absolutely crazy about you and for some reason she is ridiculously nervous about asking you to the ball."

"Do you think . . ." Hermione chewed on her lip before she let out a sigh. "Do you think I should ask her?"

Ginny threw up her hands in exasperation. "Duh!"

/

A couple days had gone by and Hermione still hadn't had a chance to ask Fleur Delacour to the Yule Ball. The task should be easy enough, but every time she worked up the nerve to ask the blonde to the ball someone else seemed to cut in front of her to beg for a chance with her, making Hermione cringe. There was no way she could be thrown in with that lot so she had settled on asking the champion during Christmas when she gave her her gift; that would be perfect.

She currently sat eating her breakfast, glancing every now and then to the Ravenclaw table to see Fleur in a world of her own. The French witch looked up for a moment and their eyes locked. Hermione sent her a smile and Fleur returned it in kind before a blush overcame her face and she went back to her food. ' _I can't believe she's really that nervous . . . It's really quite sweet.'_ Hermione thought with a sigh as she turned her attention back to her breakfast.

Ginny walked into the hall, sending a glare in Fleur's direction before she plopped down next to Hermione eating her yogurt with a smile on her face. "You seem . . . chipper." Ginny started carefully, unsure as to how her friend really felt at the moment.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Should I not be?"

"Well, I thought, you know . . . . considering . . ."

Hermione furrowed her brow in confusion. "Considering what?"

"I can't bloody believe it!" Ron cried out as he took a seat across from the girls with an unusually quiet Harry Potter.

Hermione rolled her eyes at how dramatic her friend could be. "Can't believe what Ron?"

"Blaise fucking Zambini snagged a date with Fleur Delacour to the dance!" The red-head threw his head on the table, not noticing how Hermione's hand paused as she was about to bring the spoon to her mouth.

"What?" Hermione asked, unable to believe what she just heard.

"And I was going to ask her today." Ron whined into the table while Ginny and Harry gave Hermione an apologetic look.

"That's not true." Hermione looked back to Fleur, that horrible feeling settling into the pit of her stomach, but this time it was much stronger. There was no way Fleur Delacour was going to the dance with that arrogant abercrombie and fitch model look alike Slytherin Blaise Zabini.

"It's all the Slytherins can talk about." Ron lifted his head, glaring over at the table across the way. "They always ruin everything. That stupid lucky bloke."

"I have to go." Hermione put down her spoon and abruptly stood from the table, unable to sit in the dining room any longer with her thoughts racing every which way.

"But you've barely touched your yogurt." Ron spoke with a frown, he didn't understand why his friend was acting so odd.

Hermione glanced once more at Fleur, a scowl adorning her face before she turned away. "I've lost my appetite."

"Hermione." Harry tried to call after the brunette, but she proceeded to stomp out of the dining hall.

Ginny glared at her brother, throwing her food at him. "You really are an idiot!"

Ron looked between Harry and Ginny with a mouthful of food and his brow furrowed. "What did I do?"

/

Hermione felt tears sting her eyes as she quickly walked to the library, her sanctuary where she could escape from all the insanity. ' _How could she? She made it seem like she was going to ask me and she ends up going with someone like Blaise Zabini! She told me to bloody say no to everyone just so she could keep me to herself while she does whatever she pleases. Here I thought she was acting odd because she was nervous, but she was just trying to cover up the fact she wanted to go with someone else.'_

The distraught Gryffindor took a seat at a table in the far back of the library, pulling out a text to try to distract herself and get lost in another world, but her thoughts kept going back to the champions betrayal. ' _I can't believe I told her my darkest secrets. She seemed so sincere . . . I trusted her.'_

Hermione paid no attention to the book in front of her as she stayed trapped in her own mind. She took in a deep breath, willing herself to calm down and properly think about the situation before she went too far. ' _I can't just jump to conclusions . . .'_ Hermione inwardly scolded herself at her rash thoughts. ' _There has to be a good explanation for this . . . right?'_ Hermione stood from her seat and went to put her book away with a newfound resolve. ' _I'm going to go straighten this out with her right now and-'_

"'Ermione Granger." Came a silky voice from behind Hermione as she put her book back in place. "Just ze girl I was looking for." Veronique smirked as the brunette turned around.

"Oh, uh . . . hey Veronique." Hermione shifted uncomfortably under the wicked witch's predatory stare. "Sorry, I can't really chat right now. I have some things to sort out."

Veronique smirk warped into what she thought was a sultry smile as she got a little too close to the golden girl. "Zis won't take long."

"Oh?" Hermione took a step back and Veronique took a calculated step forward.

"I 'ave a question for you Mademoiselle Granger."

Hermione took another step backwards only to find her back pressed to the bookshelf behind her, leaving her completely trapped. "W-what's that?"

"I wanted to know . . ." Veronique rested her hand on the bookshelf right next to Hermione's head, making the prefect shift her amber eyes to the hand next to her before they turned back to dark emerald green looking at her with such intensity it made her blush. "Eef you would do me ze 'onor of being my date to ze Yule Ball."

' _That bloody dance again.'_ Hermione inwardly groaned. "I'm flattered Veronique, but I um . . ."

Veronique licked her ruby lips, eyeing the golden girl up and down in a way that made Hermione pause and inwardly cringe. The raven-haired girl was gorgeous of course, but this scene felt too familiar and in all honesty she had nothing on the blonde veela that had fully captured her attention. "But what?" Veronique smiled just enough to show a hint of her perfect pearly white teeth as she leaned in a little more, tilting her head to the side, thinking Hermione was flustered for other reasons.

"I'm going with someone else." Hermione blurted out.

If Veronique was surprised by Hermione's answer it sure didn't show; she knew Fleur hadn't asked her yet and she was almost just as certain that she hadn't said yes to anyone else. "Oh?"

"Y-yeah." Hermione nodded her head.

Veronique raised an eyebrow, unconvinced. "Who?"

"I . . . Um . . ."

Veronique's lips curled up more when Hermione failed to come up with an answer right away. "I zink I deserve to know . . ." Veronique ran her free hand down Hermione's arm, making the prodigy shudder. "Who ees lucky enough to get 'Ermione Granger to go to ze ball wiz zem."

"I'm going with . . ." Hermione licked her suddenly dry lips as she struggled to come up with a name. If she said Fleur Veronique would know she was lying right away, but it was in that moment Viktor Krum walked into the library and fate gave Hermione Granger a break. "Viktor!" She spoke up, drawing the seeker's attention to her.

Veronique scoffed. "Viktor?"

"Hermione." Viktor looked from Veronique to Hermione; his brow furrowed when he noticed how uncomfortable the brunette looked. "Is everything okay?"

"Y-yeah." Hermione quickly pushed past the foreign exchange student to stand next to the Bulgarian. "I was just telling Veronique how we're going to the dance together."

Viktor seemed to perk up immediately at the bookworm's acceptance of his request and weirdly enough Veronique did too. "I see . . . well, it's my loss I suppose." Veronique smirked as she walked past the pair and sauntered out of the library. Something about the look in Veronique's deep green eyes made Hermione feel uneasy; she felt as if she fell into a trap and she really hated that.

"I'm so glad you have accepted Hermione." Viktor grinned over at the prefect, making her inwardly cringe once more.

"Me too." Hermione smiled half-heartedly at the seeker, guilt suddenly filling her gut. "But Viktor, I-"

"I must go get some things in order." He was positively beaming as he gave her hand a squeeze. "But I promise we will talk more about this later."

Hermione nodded her head. "O-okay." And with that Viktor all but skipped out of the library, making Hermione feel even worse. ' _Great job Granger . . . you've gotten yourself into a real mess this time . . .'_

/

Fleur was beyond irritated; people kept whispering every time she walked by, some sighing sadly, while others outwardly glared at the Beuxbatons student. She had no idea what was going on and it was starting to get on her last nerve. She saw Hermione at breakfast and the prefect's smile was enough to brighten her mood just a little. She had decided on trying to get alone time with Hermione, she had gone far too long without her lips, and she was afraid she really may have been acting too odd the last couple of days. ' _I am being ridiculous.'_ Fleur scoffed as she finished her parfait. ' _I am not some pre-teen child so why am I acting like one?'_

Fleur shook her head at her own ridiculousness, looking up once more to see if she could catch Hermione's eye, but she found her seat vacant and two pairs of eyes glaring at her. ' _Where did she go and what could I 'ave possibly done to make 'Arry and Ginny look at me like zat?'_ Fleur raised an eyebrow in response to the glares, but all she received was an eye roll from Ginny and a disappointed look from Harry.

That was the second sign that made her think that that day was very odd indeed. First, the whispers and now the cold shoulder from the golden trio and company excluding Hermione. The blonde could feel it in the atmosphere, something was off and she didn't like it.

She stood from her seat, putting on a neutral face as everyone watched her movement, heading for the library in search of the bookworm. On the way she passed Viktor Krum who proceeded to give her a smug look, making her narrow her arctic eyes at him as he brushed past her; that was the third sign something was amuck.

She tried to shake off the weird feeling and went into the library, hoping to find soft brown curls buried in a book, but frowned when the only thing she saw were a few Ravenclaw students studying. She went on to check the lake and didn't find Hermione there either; she would normally ask one of the golden trio where Hermione was, but she had a feeling she wasn't on the best terms with them at the moment so with a heavy sigh she resolved to go to the carriage before she took another go at finding Hermione Granger.

She hadn't been in her room for more than five minutes when Veronique came strolling in looking like the cat who ate the canary. " _ **So what color should I make my dress so we match?"**_

Fleur just rolled her eyes in response to her cocky friend. " _ **We've already been over this Veronique. I'm going with Hermione."**_

" _ **I don't think so."**_ Veronique laughed, making Fleur even more confused than she already was about everything going on that day.

" _ **What do you mean you don't think so?"**_

Veronique smiled as she took a seat on Fleur's bed. " _ **Didn't you hear?"**_

Fleur felt her blood run cold at the look on her friend's face. " _ **Hear what?"**_

Veronique looked at her nails as if she was bored, further upsetting the veela. " _ **She's going to the dance with Viktor Krum."**_

" _ **What . . .?"**_ Fleur's voice sounded so soft and broken. Why would Hermione be going to the dance with Viktor when she told her she wouldn't say yes to anyone? " _ **You're lying."**_ Fleur growled, her face hardening as an amused smile overtook Veronique's face.

" _ **Oh Fleur."**_ Veronique sighed. " _ **You should know by now when I'm lying and when I'm not."**_

Fleur searched the raven-haired girls face for any trace that she wasn't telling the truth and when she came to the conclusion that Veronique wasn't lying she felt her heart sink into her stomach, but quickly tried to save face. " _ **As if I care."**_ She grumbled, looking off to the side.

" _ **If you ask me, it's odd."**_ Veronique scrunched up her nose. " _ **Their dynamic is very 'me Tarzan, you Jane."**_

" _ **I don't even know what that means."**_ Fleur mumbled as she tried to still her racing thoughts.

Veronique just laughed in response. " _ **It's a muggle thing, you wouldn't understand."**_

Fleur barely registered anything Veronique was saying at this point, she didn't understand how this could happen. She felt an acute sting in her chest at this newfound betrayal and it was all she could seem to really focus on.

Veronique saw the confusion swimming in her friend's bright blue eyes and knew the blonde was weak, but not weak enough to fully strike yet; she just had to put one last nail in the coffin. " _ **And you know what they're going to do after that dance."**_ Fleur's only response was a brokenly confused look in the raven-haired girls direction that just egged the wicked witch on. " _ **Oh, come on. Don't look at me like that Fleur. This Yule Ball is like a muggle Senior Prom."**_

" _ **What's a . . ."**_ Fleur furrowed her brow. " _ **Senior prom?"**_

Veronique let out a laugh at Fleur's question. " _ **You really are still adorably clueless at your core aren't you?"**_ Fleur narrowed her eyes at Veronique poking fun at her at such a time. " _ **Senior Prom is the last dance they have with muggles when students are in their last year of school and . . ."**_ Veronique smirked, her green eyes sparkling mischievously. " _ **After the dance the students end up losing their virginity to their dates."**_

The acute pain in Fleur's chest increased tenfold and she became suddenly pale at Veronique's last statement. " _ **But Hermione . . ."**_

" _ **Hermione is going to be going 'Oh Viktor! Right there! Don't stop!'"**_ Veronique moaned out, mocking the golden girl as she thrusted into the bed, pretending to be the Bulgarian and the bed was her makeshift virginal Gryffindor.

Fleur clenched her fists tightly as visions of Hermione and Viktor invaded her thoughts. She closed her eyes, but it just made it worse; now she could actually see Viktor running his fingertips down Hermione's arm before he pulled her in for a kiss. The scene warped in her mind and he was slowly unzipping her dress as he kissed her shoulder before he threw the brunette onto his bed. She could see him clamber on top of Hermione and then she saw the sweat dripping down Viktor's bare back while Hermione dug her nails into him as she cried out his name while he penetrated her over and over again.

Her 'friends' laughter in the background pulled her from the dark visions, making her grit her teeth, and snap her eyes open. _**"Get out."**_

Veronique's laughter suddenly halted at Fleur's cold tone. _**"Oh come on Fleur. You had to know she was going to-"**_

" _ **Get."**_ Fleur took a slow step forward as she felt her blood start to boil. " _ **Out."**_

" _ **Hey, take it easy."**_ Veronique stood up, putting her hands on Fleur's shoulders in what she thought was a comforting gesture. _**"I'm not the enemy here. Forget about that stupid girl, she's not even worth it. I'll still go to the dance with you."**_

Veronique's words just made Fleur angrier and when Veronique went to touch her face she snatched her wrist mid-air, gripping the appendage tightly as she roughly dragged Veronique to the door. _**"Get out!"**_ She yelled as she just about threw the raven-haired girl out of the room, ignoring the hurt look in those green eyes as she slammed the door in her face.

" _ **Fine!"**_ Veronique yelled at the door. _**"Have it your way! But don't say I didn't warn you about her!"**_ And with that Veronique stormed off while Fleur was left to pace back and forth in her room, growing angrier and angrier by the moment. She paused when she saw the necklace sitting on her desk and picked it up in her hand, dangling it in front of ice cold eyes a moment before she snapped and threw it at the wall. The vase on her nightstand was next, making a loud crashing noise as it collided with the ground.

No matter how many things Fleur broke it did not ease her rage and it did not make the visions of the seeker and Hermione Granger go away. She couldn't hold herself back if she wanted to and without a second thought she stormed out of the carriage, slamming the main door behind her as she stalked to the castle.

Everyone jumped out of the veela's way as she stalked the halls, looking for the golden girl; she wanted to hear it from Hermione's mouth, she wanted the golden girl to admit that she had broken her trust. It felt like the situation with Thomas was happening all over again, but it was worse; she knew better this time and she still got tricked. She was going to get her answers and she was going to get them now.

Luckily or maybe unluckily for Fleur she did indeed find Hermione walking up to Gryffindor tower and she felt her anger increase tenfold at how casually Hermione was strolling up the steps. She picked up her speed to catch the Gryffindor and when she got to her she grabbed her by the elbow with a firm grip.

"Fleur?" Hermione furrowed her brow in confusion as the veela dragged her not too gently towards a nearby abandoned classroom. "Hey!" Hermione protested as she tried to free herself. "What the bloody hell do you think you're doing!?"

Fleur ignored Hermione's question as she flung open the door and pulled the prefect in with her; it wasn't until the door was shut tightly behind them that Hermione was finally able to free herself. "That hurt!" Hermione growled as she rubbed her elbow. "What the hell is your problem!?"

"My problem!?" Fleur yelled out as she invaded Hermione's personal space. "What's my problem?" Fleur paused and put her finger to her chin in thought, looking up at the ceiling before her cold gaze met a fiery golden one. "What ees zis I 'ear about you going to ze dance wiz Viktor Krum!?" Fleur spat out the name as if just saying it disgusted her.

Hermione's face dropped at the mention of the dance and Viktor. "Fleur . . ."

Fleur frowned when she saw the guilty look on Hermione's face. "So eet's true."

"It's not-"

"You said you would not say yes to anyone." Fleur crossed her arms, glaring at Hermione accusingly. "You deceived me." The irony of those words coming from Fleur Delacour's mouth really wasn't lost on her in that moment, but she clung to her anger all the same.

"I didn't lie Fleur." Hermione sighed. "It's entirely more complicated than you think it is and it's all a big misunderstanding."

Fleur laughed coldly. "So you accidentally said yes to 'im?"

"Yes, well no . . . actually . . . Oh bloody hell." Hermione shook her head and then remembered why she was even in that situation to begin with. "Wait!" Hermione's voice increased in volume, making Fleur's brows raise. "How dare you be upset with me!"

Fleur gritted her teeth at Hermione's tone. "Excusez-moi?"

"You have some bloody nerve dragging me into a classroom and yelling at me when you're the one who found a date to the dance without even telling me!" Hermione growled.

"What een ze world are you talking about?"

"Blaise fucking Zabini Fleur!?" Hermione pushed the blonde out of her personal space. "You're going to the dance with that fucking snake and I have to hear about it from everyone else!? Are you kidding me!?"

"Who ze 'ell ees Blaise Zabini?" Fleur grumbled as she rubbed her shoulders from the shove she received. "I do not know who zat boy ees. I do not 'ave a date."

Hermione ceased her yelling at hearing that, her face paling slightly. "But everyone said that . . ."

Fleur's gaze hardened at the now thoroughly perplexed Gryffindor. "Oh, did you 'ear some rumor and you believed eet instead of just asking me? Again?"

"I'll have you know I went to go talk to you." Hermione spoke firmly. "But YOUR friend Veronique cornered me in the library and was being very pushy about me going to the dance with her and it's not like I could tell her I was going with you now could I?" Hermione glared right back at the veela who was far too angry to see reason. "Viktor came in and I said I was going with him to get her to leave me alone."

"She did what?" Fleur asked, her eyes starting to glow a dangerous blue, feeling a newfound anger towards the raven-haired girl.

"And it's not like you were going to ask me anyways." Hermione spat out bitterly.

"You don't really believe zat." Fleur growled. "I'm sure you were just looking for an excuse to go wiz zat disgusting Bulgarian."

"Viktor is not disgusting!" Hermione shouted and Fleur felt her anger flare even more when Hermione defended her competition. "He's my friend and we're going as just friends Fleur!"

Fleur scoffed at Hermione's naïve statement. "Does 'e know zat?"

"Of course . . . I mean . . ." Hermione looked down, her brows furrowed. She hadn't meant to say that she was really going with Viktor, she had planned on letting the seeker down easy, but at this point, with how Fleur was acting, she didn't want to go with the veela at all. "I was-"

"I mean, I guess eet makes sense." Fleur grumbled as she looked off to the side, making Hermione narrow her eyes. "He ees everyzing you're looking for een a boyfriend."

"Boyfriend?" Hermione raised an eyebrow. "And what the hell does that mean? What am I looking for in a 'boyfriend'?"

"Someone wizout a bad reputation." Fleur mumbled. "Someone who eesn't tarnished and damaged."

Hermione felt her heart drop at those words; is that how Fleur thought she saw her? Tarnished and damaged? And better yet, "Are you saying you want to be my girlfriend?"

"Of course not." Fleur shot out angrily without thinking of how hurtful or horrible she sounded, but when she saw Hermione's face drop and the fire extinguish from her golden eyes she felt a new wave of guilt wash over her. "'Ermione, I didn't mean-"

"Of course not." Hermione repeated the words, shaking her head as she went to walk past Fleur to make her exit, but the French witch grabbed her arm before she went too far.

"'Ermione, s'il vous plaît-"

"Don't." Hermione yanked her arm out of Fleur's grasp, her gaze hard as she met Fleur's pleading blue eyes. "I don't need to listen to any more of this. I heard you loud and clear Fleur."

Hermione breezed past the distraught veela, but Fleur was persistent. "I did not mean eet. I-"

Hermione turned on her heel, hot tears threatening to spill from her eyes as she glared at Fleur. "You know what Fleur, I waited for you to ask me to the ball for days and you didn't so much as talk to me! I waited and now that I finally have a date you have the nerve to yell at me about it!"

"Je suis-"

Hermione took a step a back when Fleur took a tentative one forward. "Don't 'je suis désolé 'Ermione' me!" Fleur flinched at Hermione's harsh tone and the tears about to tip over in her amber eyes. "How about next time there's a ball you pluck up the courage to ask me before someone else does!?" Hermione quickly wiped a tear away when it escaped her tear duct and started to slide down her face.

"You could 'ave asked me too you know." Fleur weakly tried to defend herself, but the statement just made Hermione shake her head.

"The funny thing about that is I was." Hermione looked off to the side with a bitter smile on her face. "How foolish of me." She scoffed. "You wouldn't want to really go with me anyways, you would never want to be my girlfriend." Fleur felt her heart break even more at the sadness laced in every word Hermione spoke. "Of course not." Hermione's shaky voice sounded so broken as she repeated Fleur's own words once more before she walked out of the classroom, slamming the door behind her, and leaving a distressed veela in her wake.

Fleur stood there for a moment in complete disbelief of what occurred; did that all really just happen? Her heart felt like it was shattered into a million pieces and she didn't know where to even begin to put it back together. The one thing she did know though was Hermione Granger is really going to the dance with Viktor Krum. She felt a new wave of rage wash over her at the confirmation and with a quick swipe of her hands she knocked everything off of the professor's desk, sending papers and trinkets flying everywhere. "Merde!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It broke my heart just to write this. Please don't hate me too much ;-;


	19. The Battle of Hogwarts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for another installment :D Let's see how this dance will go after that big blow out. Now, as for the songs I used in this chapter, I used My Smile Is Extinct by Kane Strang and Rude by Magic! Hope you guys enjoy :)

After thoroughly trashing the classroom Fleur stood there for a moment, chest heaving as her mind raced with everything that had happened. Hermione was really going to the dance with Viktor Krum and yes, she had overreacted, but she was not the only one at fault and now she had a new target for her rage, the real reason why Hermione was going to the dance with Viktor Krum.

She stalked down the halls of the Beuxbatons carriage with a murderous look in her artic eyes that made the other students flinch away, but when she reached her destination she was the perfect image of calm and collected; a stark contrast to how she was moments before. She lightly knocked on the door and it was opened to reveal Veronique with a raised eyebrow. " _ **Did you come to apologize?"**_

Fleur quietly entered her room while the raven-haired witch closed the door. The second Fleur heard the click, signaling they were alone, she grabbed Veronique by the collar of her uniform with both hands and slammed her against the wall.

" _ **Kinky."**_ Veronique smirked as she licked her lips, but that just spurred Fleur to pull her from the wall and slam her harder into it, leaving the wicked witch slightly dazed.

" _ **Did you think I wouldn't find out that you asked Hermione to the dance?"**_

" _ **Don't be mad at me, because you didn't have the nerve to ask her."**_ Veronique spat out venomously.

" _ **You cornered her . . ."**_ Fleur growled. " _ **You practically pushed her into Viktor's arms . . . she would have done anything to get away from you."**_

" _ **Keep telling yourself that."**_ Veronique scoffed. " _ **And I think she rather preferred my company."**_

Fleur felt her blood boil over at the jab and brought her face close to Veronique's, her blue eyes starting to glow dangerously. " _ **Stay the fuck away from Hermione Granger."**_ Fleur spoke through gritted teeth as she tightened her hold on Veronique's collar.

Veronique narrowed her eyes and burning neon blue met deep emerald green in a heated stare. " _ **As far as I'm concerned she's free game, well maybe not now . . . considering Viktor is going to be the one to pop that ripe cherry."**_

" _ **Shut up!"**_ Fleur pulled Veronique from the wall and slammed her against another one.

The two stayed an inch a part, both breathing heavily at the adrenaline coursing through their veins as they stayed locked in their heated stare. The gap was suddenly closed between them when Veronique leaned forward and smashed her lips against the enraged veela who immediately let go of the collar of her dress and pulled away.

" _ **What the hell Veronique!?"**_ Fleur cried out as she wiped her lips with the back of her hand as if Veronique's lips were filled with poison.

" _ **Oh come on."**_ Veronique smirked. " _ **Don't tell me you didn't want that too."**_

" _ **You're supposed to be my friend."**_ Fleur glared daggers at the manipulative witch as she clenched her hands into tight fists.

Veronique let out a sigh. " _ **I am Fleur."**_

" _ **You sure have a funny way of acting like it."**_ Fleur grumbled.

" _ **Look, I'm sorry okay?"**_ Veronique suddenly switched into the role of a devoted caring friend. " _ **I didn't see any harm in asking her and I had no idea she would decide to go with Viktor, but you can't really believe I'm the only reason why she's going with him."**_

" _ **You are."**_ Fleur hardened her gaze, keeping her resolve. " _ **And now she's pissed at me."**_

" _ **Well if you acted even a fraction towards her how you acted towards me I can see why."**_ Veronique grumbled as her sore back finally registered in her mind.

Fleur crossed her arms. " _ **You deserve a lot worse and you know it."**_

" _ **Maybe, but I was right about Hermione Granger and you know it."**_

Fleur rolled her eyes. " _ **You really weren't. She's nothing like you say she is . . . I should have just . . ."**_ Fleur let out a sigh, all of her rage was gone and now she was just filled with regret. Regret for not asking Hermione sooner, regret for letting her insecurities get the best of her, regret for yelling at her the way she did. Everything. " _ **Asked her."**_

Veronique groaned at the whole scene playing in front of her, it was so sickly sweet that it made her want to vomit. " _ **There's no use crying over spilled milk Fleur. That girl is hardly worth your time. Just forget about her."**_

Fleur's only response was a shake of her head, sadness replacing the anger that was once burning in her sapphire orbs as she walked out of the room and headed to her own to wallow in her self-pity. She had been completely wrong about everything and now Hermione probably didn't want anything to do with her. She had sufficiently pushed Hermione Granger right into Viktor Krum's waiting arms and she had no idea how to cope with that.

/

Hermione stormed into the Gryffindor common room, desperately trying to keep her tears at bay as she replayed her entire argument with Fleur in her head over and over again like a broke record. She briefly noticed Harry and Ginny sitting on the couch in the corner doing homework and she hoped she could slip past them without being noticed, but nothing really went Hermione's way these days.

"Mione?" Harry looked up to see his friend looking thoroughly distressed and immediately went running up to the girl furiously wiping away a tear that slid down her cheek with Ginny in tow. "What happened? What's wrong?"

"Who do I have to kill?" Ginny growled.

"I-it's nothing." Hermione shook her head, but another stray tear falling down her cheek told them different.

"Hermione . . ." Ginny frowned and immediately pulled her friend into a tight hug where Hermione proceeded to sob into her shoulder. "What happened? You can tell us."

"It's all a bloody mess." Hermione mumbled as Ginny and Harry lead her to the couch so she could sit down.

Harry furrowed his brow in confusion. "What is?"

Hermione went on to tell her friends everything that had happened, leaving both of them silent for a moment after.

"So it was all a stupid rumor." Harry sighed, feeling slightly guilty himself for thinking Fleur was betraying his friend.

"It doesn't excuse her acting like a right prat to Hermione." Ginny growled. "Even if she was just being stupid and jealous."

"Jealous?" Hermione laughed. "She made it very clear she doesn't want anything serious with me."

"Oh Hermione." Ginny shook her head. "You really are clueless. She is just a stupid git that obviously doesn't think before she speaks especially when she's insanely jealous."

"I told her we're going as just friends . . ." Hermione mumbled.

"Like that would make a difference." Ginny scoffed. "Viktor has had the hots for you since day one and Fleur knows it. I would probably be jealous too if I was her."

Hermione looked down with a sniffle. "Well it doesn't really matter now."

Harry put a reassuring hand on Hermione's shoulder. "It can still be fixed Hermione. You just have to talk to her . . . perhaps when you've both calmed down."

"As if I'll talk to her after what she pulled." Hermione grumbled.

Ginny and Harry let out a collective sigh. "You two really are perfect for each other." Ginny spoke as she shook her head, making Hermione glare at her while Harry tried to hold back his smile. "You're both bloody stubborn."

Hermione huffed. "I am not stubborn."

"That totally just helped your case." Harry grinned, earning himself a shove from the brunette.

"Whose side are you on anyways?"

"Yours of course." Harry grinned. "I'm always on your side Hermione, you know that. I just want you to be happy and well, this all seems like one big horrible misunderstanding."

"Well she started it." Hermione grumbled.

"Real mature." Ginny rolled her eyes. "Leave it to Fleur Delacour to reduce Hermione Granger to childish behavior."

Hermione just glared at her friends who proceeded to burst out into a fit of laughter at the look on her face; she felt a small smile tug at her lips at their antics, already feeling a little better now that she talked to them.

/

The next morning was the first day of their holiday break, but everyone was staying for the ball, making Hermione's task a little more difficult. She had woken up feeling slightly guilty for saying yes to Viktor without explaining the full situation and felt even worse that Fleur thought that there was anything romantic between her and the seeker; not that she would admit that to anyone.

She walked into the dining hall, her amber eyes scanning the room for a red uniform and dark hair, but felt her eyes drift to the Ravenclaw table where she saw Fleur's usual spot vacant. She pushed down her disappointment and went about the task of finding the seeker, but it seemed he found her instead.

"Hermione." Viktor smiled as he approached the brunette from behind, making the bookworm jump a bit.

"Oh, hey Viktor." Hermione turned around, blushing lightly at how easy she was to scare sometimes. "I was just looking for you. Do you think we could talk somewhere more private?"

Viktor furrowed his brow for a moment before he nodded his head, something seemed kind of off about the golden girl. "Of course." They walked outside to a quiet corner while Hermione fiddled with her hands nervously making Viktor frown. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything is fine." Hermione smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I just . . . I need to make some things clear Viktor."

"Vhat is it?"

Hermione chewed on her lower lip, working up the courage to say what she needed to. "I need to go over the conditions of us going to the dance together."

Viktor raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Listen Viktor, I'm not trying to be mean, but I'm also not trying to lead you on or anything . . . but if we go to the dance together it has to be strictly as friends." Viktor's face slightly fell at Hermione's words. "I'm sorry and I understand if you don't want to go with me now."

"No, no." Viktor shook his head. "It is fine Hermione. I vould be lying if I said I vasn't disappointed, but I understand. I appreciate you being honest vith me."

Hermione let out a relieved sigh at the seeker's calm demeanor. "Thank you. It just wouldn't be fair to you to lie and while I'm being perfectly honest this isn't because you're not nice and handsome and you know. . ." Hermione blushed. "I just-"

"Like someone else." He smiled sadly, finishing Hermione's sentence, making the brunette blush an even deeper shade of red.

"Yes."

"Vhy don't you go vith them?" He tilted his head to the side.

Hermione let out a sigh. "It's entirely too complicated to even start to go into that."

Viktor nodded his head. "Vell, I am very lucky to have you go vith me anyvays."

"So we're okay? We're friends?" Hermione looked up at the seeker who nodded.

"Yes. Friends." He held out his hand and Hermione shook it with a grateful smile.

/

Fleur had spent the entire night and morning moping in bed, feeling bad for herself; she still found it incredibly hard to believe that the previous night happened. She felt horrible; she never meant to yell at Hermione or to blurt out that she wouldn't want to be her girlfriend, she was just so hurt and now things were worse. She had every intention of staying indoors and away from the heated glares she was sure to receive from the golden trio, but when the temptation of food proved to be too hard to dismiss she pulled herself up.

She trudged up to the castle, ignoring looks students shot at her when she stumbled upon Hermione smiling and talking with Viktor Krum outside. Her heart dropped into her stomach at the sight in front of her; she felt angry, enraged, betrayed all over again, but most of all she felt an overwhelming sadness wash over her and suddenly she didn't feel very hungry anymore so instead she turned on her heel and headed back to the carriage.

She promptly pulled out her ipod, putting the buds in her ears as she plopped back onto her bed, looking up at the ceiling with a far-off look in her eyes. Hermione looked perfectly content with the Bulgarian and she knew she had no one else to blame but herself for that. She had screwed up and now she was paying for the horrible mistake she made.

She'd met another boy  
Another pretty boy

I said kill me now, I want to die  
I heard there's a chance at an afterlife  
I might not get let in  
But at least I won't be living

Here I am, sandwiched between  
Heaven and hell—oh what, they don't exist?  
Oh well, I wouldn't have gotten into the good one  
And I still won't be living

Fleur rolled over onto her side, letting out a sigh as she tried to block out all thoughts of Hermione and Viktor, but it was impossible. It was like torture thinking about the brunette going to a dance with someone else and possibly doing what Veronique kept telling her they were going to. Her chest went from feeling empty and hollow to an acute sharp pain; back and forth, over and over again and she had no idea how to make it stop.

To see her with another man  
Oh that really, really, really, really wasn't my plan  
I used to ask life to kill me slowly  
But now I beg you just get on with it

" _ **Fleur?"**_ Odette poked her head into the alpha's room, frowning when she was greeted with Fleur's back.

Fleur could sense Odette had come in, but refused to turn to look at her while she was so despondent, but the red-head was persistent and took a seat on the edge of her bed while she tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention.

Fleur replied by simply taking out one ear bud. " _ **What do you need?"**_

" _ **I just wanted to come check on you, I could feel you from across the carriage."**_ Odette spoke softly. " _ **What's wrong?"**_

" _ **She's going to the stupid dance with Viktor Krum."**_ Fleur mumbled sadly, feeling her heart sink from simply speaking those words.

Odette blinked her eyes a couple times, processing what her alpha just told her. " _ **Hermione?"**_

" _ **Yes."**_

" _ **Oh, Fleur . . ."**_ Odette sighed. " _ **I'm sure It's not what you think it is. I don't think she even likes him."**_

" _ **She tried to say they're going as just friends."**_ Fleur scoffed. " _ **That boy has a lot more than friendship on his mind."**_

A small smile tugged at Odette's lips; her alpha was so in love and she found it adorable. " _ **I hardly think that matters. It's you she's always looking at over her shoulder, not Viktor Krum."**_

" _ **I doubt that will be the case now . . ."**_

Odette let out a knowing sigh; she knew her alpha could overreact and let her emotions get the best of her, especially when it came to someone or something she cared about, not that Fleur would ever admit it. " _ **What did you do?"**_

Fleur turned and buried her face into her pillow. " _ **I yelled at her and . . ."**_

Odette raised an eyebrow. " _ **And?"**_ Fleur mumbled into the pillow, making Odette let out a laugh at the dramatic veela. " _ **I can't hear you when you mumble into the pillow."**_

Fleur let out a sigh as she lifted her head up, her bright blue orbs looking at the red-head out of the corner of her eye. " _ **When she asked if I wanted to be her girlfriend I said . . . of course not."**_ Odette just shook her head in response, spurring Fleur into further explaining. " _ **I wasn't thinking when I said it! I didn't mean it, I was just so . . . angry. There was a rumor going around that I was going to the dance with some boy I've never heard of and she just believed it and went straight to Viktor without even asking me."**_

" _ **So you want to be her girlfriend then?"**_ Odette grinned, making Fleur blush.

" _ **I-I don't know . . . Maybe . . . I mean, I ended the bet with Veronique."**_

Odette jumped up and down excitedly at the news. " _ **You did!? Oh Fleur, I'm so happy! This is wonderful!"**_

" _ **That hardly changes anything."**_ Fleur grumbled. " _ **She hates me now."**_

" _ **Oh, I highly doubt that. I think you were both upset and said things you don't mean."**_ Odette put her hand on her alpha's shoulder, trying to send soothing comforting waves to help ease the blonde's anguish that she could still feel radiating off of her. " _ **She cares about you. I know she does and one fight isn't going to change that."**_

" _ **We'll see."**_ Fleur smiled sadly up at the red-head, but her brow furrowed when she felt a bit of anxiety through Odette's comforting waves. " _ **Odette . . . is something wrong?"**_

" _ **I wouldn't say something is um . . . wrong."**_ Odette blushed as she pulled her hand away from Fleur. " _ **I have something that I need to ask you . . ."**_

Fleur sat up when she saw how conflicted Odette looked and her instincts to take care of her flock took over. " _ **What is it?"**_

" _ **Please don't be upset . . . I've tried to respect your wishes . . ."**_ Odette chewed on her lower lip, her bright eyes drifting to the side of the room away from Fleur's probing gaze.

" _ **Odette, tell me."**_

" _ **I wanted to know if it would be okay with you if I . . ."**_ Odette clenched her fist nervously before she let out a sigh and turned her gaze back to Fleur. " _ **If I took Gabrielle to the ball."**_

" _ **What!?"**_ Fleur jumped to her feet, glowering at the red-head shrinking in on herself. " _ **Absolutely not! I've told you my little sister is off limits! "**_

" _ **Fleur, I-"**_

" _ **Have you been fucking my little sister!?"**_ Fleur growled as her eyes started to glow dangerously. " _ **She's only fifteen!"**_

" _ **Fleur!"**_ Gabrielle suddenly burst in the room upon feeling Odette's growing apprehension and stood between her sister and her secret girlfriend. " _ **Back off!"**_

" _ **Back off!?"**_ Fleur shouted. " _ **My friend has been fucking my little sister!"**_

" _ **It's not like that."**_ Odette spoke up quietly, looking up at her fuming alpha.

" _ **Bullshit."**_ Fleur spat out, glaring at Odette over her sibling's shoulder. " _ **How dare you take advantage of her!"**_

" _ **Take advantage of me!?"**_ Gabrielle pushed Fleur back. " _ **I'm not some little girl!'**_

" _ **You're only fifteen!"**_

" _ **About to be sixteen and Odette is seventeen! She isn't some twenty something year old trying to take advantage of me Fleur!"**_

Odette frowned, looking down. " _ **I would never do that."**_

" _ **But you would see her behind my back."**_ Fleur huffed as she crossed her arms.

Odette winced at Fleur's words. " _ **Fleur, I'm-"**_

" _ **Get out."**_ Fleur growled at the red-head who just responded by nodding her head sadly and leaving immediately, leaving the two sisters to stand there glaring at each other.

" _ **You're unbelievable. You know that Fleur?"**_ Gabrielle grumbled. " _ **Odette has been nothing but supportive of you even at your worst Fleur. The least you can do is be supportive of her. She had the respect to ask you to take me to the dance when I told her it wasn't necessary."**_ Fleur grew quiet when she heard her sister's words, that guilty feeling starting to creep into her veins again. " _ **She loves you and admires you. You didn't have to do that."**_

" _ **I'm sorry Gabrielle . . ."**_ Fleur mumbled softly as her brain started to catch up with everything.

" _ **Don't say sorry to me."**_ Gabrielle sighed. " _ **Say sorry to Odette."**_

Fleur just looked down as her sister exited the room, leaving her alone once more with her thoughts.

/

Later that day Fleur found herself at the lake with her feet dangling off the edge of the dock as she looked at the silver necklace she got Hermione in her hand. She heard soft footsteps approaching her and discreetly pocketed the gift and looked out at the dark murky water, hoping that her disinterest would dissuade anyone from talking to her.

"Hey there Fleur."

"'Ello 'Arry." Fleur spoke softly as she kept get gaze steady on the water while the boy who lived sat down next to her.

"How are you holding up?"

"What do you mean?" Fleur replied as she played with the necklace in her pocket.

"Hermione told me what happened . . ." Harry spoke carefully upon seeing the blonde stiffen at Hermione's name. "She's uh, pretty broken up about the whole thing."

"I did not mean to 'urt 'er." Fleur mumbled sadly, although she felt her veela stir hopefully when she heard Hermione was taking the situation hard as well.

Harry nodded his head. "I know."

The two sat in silence for a moment while Fleur fought with herself to ask something that she couldn't stop thinking about. "Does she really like Viktor?"

Harry let out a laugh, making Fleur look over at him incredulously. "You can't really be asking me that question."

"I did not think eet was funny." Fleur grumbled.

Harry grinned over at the pouting veela. "You two really are hopeless."

"I 'ave no idea what you're talking about." Fleur put up her nose, making Harry's grin widen.

"Fleur, Hermione was beside herself waiting for you to ask her to the dance." That statement alone caught Fleur's attention, making her watch the messy haired boy curiously as he talked. "Viktor isn't even on her radar and if she wasn't so damn stubborn I know she would ditch him in a heartbeat for you."

"You really zink zat?"

Harry scoffed. "Oh, I know it. Hermione just needs time."

Fleur nodded her head, looking back to the water. "I understand."

"I suppose I should be yelling at you for hurting her, but I think you're beating yourself up more than I ever could." Harry smirked while Fleur let out a sigh.

"Oui."

"So do you know who you want to go to the dance with then?"

Fleur let out a soft laugh. "Non. Ze only person I wanted to take ees not speaking to me."

"You know going stag isn't an option right?" Harry grinned over at the blonde who rolled her eyes.

"Oui, Madame Maxime informed me of zis ze ozer day. Who are you going wiz?"

A blush lit up Harry's cheeks at her question, making the blonde raise an eyebrow. "I'm going to ask Cho Chang."

"Does 'Arry Potter 'ave a crush?" Fleur smirked, making Harry's blush deepen.

Harry ducked his head. "Maybe."

"Well you better ask 'er before eet ees too late." Fleur smiled sadly at Harry who nodded his head in agreement.

"You're right." He spoke as he stood up, trying to build up the confidence to go get the girl he had been crushing on since his fourth year.

"Do not be so worried 'Arry." Fleur looked up when she felt little anxious waves rolling off of him. "I am sure she will say yes."

"Thanks." Harry grinned sheepishly down at the blonde before going to leave but paused in his steps, looking back at the veela. "Oh and Fleur."

"Oui?"

"I know it's hard, but try not to worry too much about Viktor. Hermione is mad about you." He grinned, making Fleur blush lightly.

"No promises."

Harry just laughed at Fleur's answer before he went off to go get his date for the ball.

/

It was finally Christmas Day and while everyone was rushing around excited to open their gifts Fleur dragged her feet through the carriage, the necklace weighing heavy in her pocket. She hadn't seen Hermione at all the last week and it was eating away at her. She wanted to give her her gift, but was certain she would receive a scolding in response so she settled on making things right with at least one person in her life.

She made her way to Odette's room with a small present in hand and knocked on the door. When Odette opened it to see her alpha Fleur felt a wave of apprehension wash over her originating from the red-head. " _ **Calm down Odette, I'm not here to yell at you."**_

Odette just nodded her head, eyeing the present for a moment before she took a step back to let Fleur in. " _ **Is that for me?"**_

" _ **Yes, part one of it anyways."**_ Fleur smiled as she handed it to her friend. " _ **Consider it a peace offering."**_

Odette blushed as she sat down on her bed and carefully opened the present to reveal a stunning pair of diamond earrings. " _ **Fleur, this must have cost a fortune."**_ Odette looked up with wide blue eyes.

" _ **It's the least I could do."**_

" _ **If this is part one I really don't need a part two."**_ Odette beamed up at her alpha.

" _ **Part two is very necessary."**_ Fleur mumbled as she sat down next to the confused veela. " _ **I thought those earrings would go really well with your dress for the ball. I know Gabrielle would love to see them on you."**_

" _ **Fleur, I-"**_

" _ **I'm giving you my blessing to see my little sister."**_ Fleur smiled as she grabbed Odette's hands. " _ **Not that you need it. I suppose Gabrielle is old enough to make her own decisions and I couldn't be happier to have someone so kind and trustworthy as her um . . . her girlfriend right?"**_

Odette nodded her head with a blush, remaining quiet for a moment before she leapt into her alpha's arms, wrapping the shocked veela in a tight hug. " _ **Thank you so much Fleur. You don't know what this means to me."**_

" _ **No need to thank me Odette."**_ Fleur smiled as she patted the red-heads back. " _ **I shouldn't have yelled at you like I did. I'm sorry."**_

Odette pulled away with a grin. " _ **It's okay."**_

" _ **But I must warn you . . ."**_ Fleur raised an eyebrow. " _ **If you hurt my little sister there will be consequences."**_

They both looked solemnly at each other for a moment before they burst into a fit of laughter; Fleur knew Odette was a kind soul and would never purposely hurt her sister. In all honesty she was lucky her sister was with someone like Odette.

" _ **Is everything okay in here?"**_ Gabrielle asked with a raised eyebrow as she poked her head into Odette's room.

" _ **Everything is fine."**_ Odette grinned while Fleur huffed.

" _ **You act as if I'm a child that needs to be looked after."**_ Fleur grumbled.

Gabrielle smirked at her sister's actions. " _ **Aren't you though?"**_

" _ **Gabrielle!'**_ Fleur yelled out as she went chasing after her sister down the halls of the carriage.

/

After thoroughly exhausting herself chasing her sister around the carriage with Odette's laughter following close behind her the three girls exchanged gifts and made their way up to the dining hall with a smile on their faces. They sat down for breakfast, happily chatting when Hermione Granger walked in with her own friends.

Fleur felt her smile drop and the air leave her lungs upon finally seeing the Gryffindor after a week without so much of a glimpse of her. ' _She ees so beautiful.'_ Fleur sighed to herself as she took in the black and gray argyle sweater Hermione was wearing matched with a black skirt.

It was as if Hermione could sense her stare and with a flick of her eyes amber met icy blue. Fleur held her breath as they shared their quiet moment; she was hopeful Hermione might give her a smile seeing as it was Christmas, but instead she received a sad despondent look and then Hermione was back to chatting with her friends.

" _ **I see you two still aren't talking."**_ Odette sighed when she felt the sad waves rolling off of her alpha. " _ **Are you going to try to give her her gift?"**_

" _ **Her gift?"**_ Fleur blushed and could feel her heartbeat pounding in her ears as she fingered the necklace she made a habit of carrying around with her in her pocket. " _ **I don't think she is quite ready to talk to me yet."**_

" _ **Have you even tried to say sorry?"**_ Gabrielle asked with a raised eyebrow, making Fleur duck her head.

" _ **No."**_

" _ **You are so absurd."**_ Gabrielle scoffed.

" _ **She always is."**_ Veronique smirked as she approached the table.

" _ **Hey Veronique."**_ Odette smiled, trying to ease the anger building up in her girlfriend inspired by the mere presence of Veronique. " _ **Merry Christmas."**_

Veronique smiled a rare smile back at the red-head. " _ **Merry Christmas."**_

" _ **You're in a weirdly good mood today."**_ Gabrielle mumbled into her drink.

" _ **That's because I got Louis Vuitton shoes from my parents, they're not even out yet."**_ Veronique grinned. " _ **Didn't you notice them Fleur?"**_ Veronique asked with a tilt of her head to the quiet blonde.

" _ **Yeah, they're nice."**_ Fleur said absentmindedly as she kept her gaze on Hermione chatting with her friends.

"Are you going to give Fleur her gift?" Harry asked as he looked over Hermione's shoulder to see Fleur looking absolutely miserable watching Hermione.

"I didn't get her anything."Hermione said stubbornly as she poked at her food.

"Bloody liar." Ginny scoffed, earning herself a glare from the golden girl.

"Why would Mione get Fleur a gift?" Ron asked, looking between all of his friends who shook their heads.

"You really are clueless." Ginny laughed.

"Oi! It's Christmas Gin! You're supposed to be nice to me!" Ron pouted.

Hermione raised an eyebrow at Ron's childish antics. "Says who?"

"Says me." He grumbled earning himself a laugh from everyone at the table.

Harry clapped a hand on Ron's shoulder with a grin. "Don't ever change mate."

/

The night of the ball approached faster than Fleur anticipated and she currently stood with the other champions, glaring daggers at Viktor while her date she settled on, Cedric Diggory, stood proudly next to her. She supposed he was handsome enough to accompany her and didn't seem dumb enough to drool over her all night.

Harry shot Fleur a small smile as he stood next to his date Cho Chang while Viktor paced nervously at the foot of the stairs, further irritating the veela. ' _Maybe she stood 'im up.'_ Fleur thought to herself with a smirk at the seeker's nervous behavior, but he stopped pacing and looked up the stairs, drawing Fleur's attention to the top where Hermione stood.

Fleur's breath caught in her throat at the sight of Hermione Granger in a dark red gown with gold accents and designs going up the corset type top reaching from the middle of the dress all the way to her breasts; of course Hermione would sport her house's colors for the ball.

She admired Hermione's flowing brown and blonde hair that was straightened, spilling down her bare delicate shoulders and then her eyes drifted to the Gryffindor's lips that were painted a deep ruby red that matched her dress, making those full lips even more enticing. Fleur was completely enchanted by the Gryffindor and it took everything she had in her to stop her eyes from glowing as she fiddled with the necklace that was meant for said prodigy hanging around her neck while she watched Hermione gracefully descend down the steps . . . to Viktor Krum.

She had to bite back a growl at the mere sight of Viktor taking Hermione's hand with a grin and then he whispered something that made Hermione light up and blush. Fleur was absolutely beside herself at the sight in front of her; that should be her with Hermione, not that Bulgarian. She told herself to keep herself in check, but was finding it incredibly difficult with Viktor looking at Hermione like that.

"Remember our agreement." Harry spoke quietly to the fuming veela.

"I agreed to nozing." Fleur grumbled as she turned back to Cedric watching her with worried eyes.

"Is everything okay?" He asked with a nervous smile.

"Peachy." Fleur mumbled as McGonagall came out, ushering them to line up.

As Hermione passed Fleur her eyes flickered up and down the veela's body; admiring her own choice of gown with a blush. Fleur was sporting a tight blue and silver dress that clung to her every curve in a way that made Hermione bite her lower lip. Her amber eyes landed on a necklace hanging from Fleur's neck she kept fiddling with and couldn't help but notice the blue and red rubies moving around inside of the vined heart.

She looked up and her gaze met Fleur's; they hadn't been this close in a long time and the feeling was overwhelming. She wanted to say how good Fleur looked, wanted to say anything really, but Fleur just looked off to the side, breaking eye contact. ' _Stubborn git.'_ Hermione thought with a growl as her gaze shifted over to Fleur's date, further pissing the Gryffindor off. ' _Cedric blood Diggory? Are you kidding me?'_ Hermione thought to herself with a huff as she walked forward with Viktor and took their place in line.

The doors opened and the three champions walked through with their dates. Hermione kept her head held high, trying to hide her blush at all the eyes on her; she really did hate all the attention she received still, but Fleur didn't look the least bit bothered as she walked in with Cedric.

' _I can't believe she went with him.'_ Hermione thought to herself, trying to hold back her scowl as she took her place on the ballroom floor with Viktor. The music started and Hermione tried to put her mind to the task at hand as she placed her hand in Viktor's while placing the other one on his shoulder, but her gaze kept shifting the blonde who was the embodiment of perfection. They moved to the beat seamlessly even though Hermione was thoroughly distracted, but when Viktor picked her up to twirl her she couldn't help the easy laugh that slipped from her lips at the grin he gave her, pulling her from her dark thoughts.

Fleur heard the musical laughter of Hermione and glared over at the pair, trying to swallow the lump in her throat and keep her gaze on Cedric, but she constantly felt it drifting over to the Gryffindor who couldn't seem to care less about her in that moment.

Soon everyone else joined in and the song ended so Fleur made her way to a table, sitting down heavily as she watched Hermione laugh and smile with the seeker. ' _Stupid brute.'_ Fleur thought with a grumble as Cedric brought her a drink.

"Would you care for another dance?" He smiled as he looked over at the new band playing loud popular rock music the entire student body was dancing to.

"Non." Fleur grumbled as she drank the beverage, trying to keep her eyes from glowing when she saw Hermione jumping around with Viktor. '' _e doesn't even know 'ow to dance. 'e looks absurd.'_ Fleur thought darkly to herself as Cedric took a seat next to her with a sad sigh, drawing her attention. "You are not obligated to stay wiz me. You can dance wiz whoever you like Monsieur Diggory."

"I can't just leave you." He frowned.

Fleur rolled her eyes as she finished her drink that was clearly spiked with alcohol. It would seem the Hogwarts students weren't as boring as she thought they were. "You really can."

"Alright." Cedric grumbled. "I'll leave you be then." He drained the rest of his drink, going off to hang out with his friends, leaving Fleur to stew by herself.

Her artic eyes scanned the room and saw her sister with Odette and a small smile tugged at her lips despite how down she felt; it was nice to see at least one Delacour enjoying themselves and looking happy.

" _ **You're not really going to sit here and mope all night are you?"**_ Veronique approached the blonde with an amused grin that made her groan; Fleur just wanted to be left alone.

Fleur eyed her friend warily. " _ **What do you want?"**_

" _ **I may not be veela, but I can feel you pouting and stewing all the way across the room."**_ Veronique laughed. " _ **And your date does not look very happy."**_

" _ **Madame Maxime wouldn't let me go alone."**_ Fleur mumbled.

" _ **You tried to go alone?"**_ Veronique laughed.

" _ **Yup."**_

" _ **You are entirely too hung up on that stupid girl."**_ Veronique scoffed as Fleur kept her gaze steady on Hermione and Viktor. " _ **She isn't worth a second of your time."**_

Fleur rolled her arctic eyes as she stood up and went to grab another drink, leaving a skeptical witch in her wake. " _ **Whatever."**_

" _ **Hey there Fleur!"**_ Odette smiled happily as she approached her alpha with Gabrielle in tow, grabbing a drink. " _ **Where is your date?"**_

Fleur shrugged as she casually took a sip from her spiked punch, keeping her eyes on Hermione who was now sitting with her friends and Viktor. " _ **I have no idea."**_

Both Odette and Gabrielle followed Fleur's gaze and landed on the thing that had their alpha so enraptured. " _ **Why don't you ask her to dance?"**_ Gabrielle asked with a raised eyebrow as she turned her attention back to her moping sister.

" _ **She hasn't even talked to me since everything happened. I doubt she would want to dance with me."**_ Fleur grumbled.

" _ **You'll never know if you don't try."**_ Odette put on her best encouraging smile.

Fleur just eyed the red-head for a moment with a scowl before turning her attention back to the brunette. " _ **I think I'd rather take my chances with this spiked punch."**_

" _ **You are so ridiculous."**_ Gabrielle sighed. " _ **She keeps looking over at you and instead of talking to her you would rather pout."**_

" _ **I don't pout."**_ Fleur glared at her sister, making the younger blonde burst out into a fit of laughter.

" _ **You're pouting now!"**_

"Why don't you ask Fleur to dance?" Harry spoke to Hermione whose amber eyes kept drifting over to the fuming veela while Viktor went off to refill their cups.

"Why would I do that?" Hermione huffed, looking back to her friend. "She was the one completely in the wrong and hasn't said anything to me."

Harry sighed. "She's miserable Mione and feels bad for everything."

"She has a funny way of showing it." Hermione grumbled. "And I refuse to let her ruin my evening."

"She hasn't even done anything." Harry laughed, making Hermione scowl.

"She went to the bloody dance with Cedric Diggory."

Harry just rolled his eyes. "It's not like she could go stag. The champions are required to have a date to the dance and you know it. You're just being stubborn and jealous."

Hermione's eyes widened at Harry's statement and proceeded to hit her friend in the arm. "I am NOT jealous."

"Oh yeah, clearly." Harry laughed. "You've just been staring at her the whole night and glaring at Cedric every chance you get."

"I have not." Hermione mumbled with a blush.

"And even though you have been so observant of her all night, you have failed to notice she completely blew Cedric off."

"I doubt it." Hermione grumbled as she glared at the brunette Hufflepuff across the room chatting with his friends. "I mean why in the world would she blow the beautiful Cedric Diggory off?"

"Because she wants you, not him Mione." Harry smiled at his friend who proceeded to turn a brighter shade of red.

"That's not true."

"You really are clueless sometimes." Harry scoffed. "But if you insist on being stubborn. . ." Harry stood up and held his hand out to his friend, trying to break her from her bad mood. "Will you at least honor me with a dance?"

Hermione let out a huff be, glaring at his hand for a moment before she sighed and grabbed it. "Fine, but I'm not jealous."

Harry just laughed in response. "Of course not."

The two went to the dance floor with Fleur's ever watchful sharp gaze on them, but they went about their dance as if no one was watching.

Saturday morning jumped out of bed and put on my best suit  
Got in my car and raced like a jet, all the way to you  
Knocked on your door with heart in my hand  
To ask you a question  
Cause I know that you're an old fashioned man yeah yeah

Harry tugged at Hermione's arms slowly making both their arms go back and forth with a silly grin on his face, moving his body left to right while he tugged at her. The brunette stood there with a scowl, but it slowly transformed into a smile when Harry wouldn't relent.

"You really are a horrible dancer." Hermione laughed.

Can I have your daughter for the rest of my life? say yes, say yes  
Cause I need to know  
You say I'll never get your blessing till the day I die  
Tough luck my friend but the answer is no!

"I know." Harry grinned. "But you love me anyways."

Fleur felt a smile tug at her lips when she saw how Harry made his friend laugh before he twirled the prodigy around and brought her closer to him, dancing clumsily from side to side.

Why you gotta be so rude?  
Don't you know I'm human too  
Why you gotta be so rude  
I'm gonna marry her anyway  
Marry that girl  
Marry her anyway  
Marry that girl  
Yeah no matter what you say  
Marry that girl  
And we'll be a family  
Why you gotta be so rude

Fleur leaned back against the table, watching the two friends start to jump around and Harry pulled Hermione in every which direction, making the Gryffindor laugh in a way that made Fleur want to laugh too. Her brown and blonde hair whipped around her and her full red lips were pulled into a permanent smile as long as she was playing around with her friend.

She felt a tug in her chest at the sight and wanted nothing more than to go up to the brunette and make things right; she couldn't stand that they weren't talking. It was killing her and she hated the idea of her being the reason Hermione was so upset.

Fleur pushed off the table when she saw the two stop dancing, draining her drink to get a little liquid courage to finally make things right, but as she took her first steps to do just that Viktor approached Hermione with a smile, handing her a drink.

A scowl overcame Fleur's features once more at the sight and she leaned back on the table, crossing her arms. How could she approach the golden girl when that vulture was constantly hovering around her?

/

As the night went on Fleur continued to keep her distance, choosing to indulge in alcohol instead of facing her problems while she watched said problem grow closer and closer to Hermione. It was nearing midnight and the two were starting to get too comfortable with each other for Fleur's liking. They were practically all over each other so Fleur decided enough was enough.

Hermione and Viktor were currently in the corner whispering to each other and giggling when Fleur approached the pair trying to look as calm and collected as possible even though her veela was in an absolute uproar inside of her. She stood beside them for a moment, but when neither one of them noticed her presence she let out a soft cough to gain their attention, but still nothing.

"Excusez-moi." Fleur finally spoke up, stepping between the two when Hermione placed her hand on Viktor's arm.

That was enough to make Hermione finally turn to Fleur with a raised eyebrow. "Yes."

"I was 'oping I could talk wiz you for a moment."

Viktor furrowed his brow, looking very unhappy at that thought while Hermione rolled her eyes. "No, I'm busy."

"'Ermione." Fleur tried again, gently grabbing Hermione's arm, but the brunette ripped it from her grasp.

"She does not vant to see you." Viktor practically growled, stepping between Fleur and his date.

Fleur narrowed her eyes, refusing to back down to the Bulgarian trying to intimidate her. "I zink 'Ermione can speak for 'erself."

"He's right." Hermione sighed. "I don't want to see you."

Fleur faltered for a moment, looking past Viktor to see Hermione looking at Viktor adoringly, as if he was her knight in shining armor. "'Ermione, you don't mean zat."

Hermione scoffed in response, grabbing Viktor's arm. "I do and quite frankly you're bothering us."

Fleur felt like she got stabbed in the chest by the statement. "Bozering you?" Fleur stood there for a moment, taking in Hermione's cold demeanor and hard stare; she looked like she really meant those words and that was what hurt the most. "I see, well zen I won't bozer you anymore." Fleur grumbled as she stormed back to her friends who were watching her with worried eyes.

"Mione, what the hell was that?" Harry frowned as he approached his friend; he watched the interaction and was completely perplexed as to why Hermione was acting so horribly.

"What was what?" Hermione smiled dreamily as if the last interaction never happened, looking up at Viktor who was watching her with just as much adoration in his eyes.

"What did you just say to Fleur? She looks devastated."

"Who?" Hermione asked, still not looking at her friend.

Harry was completely taken aback by Hermione's behavior. "You're kidding right?"

"Nope." Hermione smiled. "I'm just trying to enjoy myself Harry, I suggest you do the same." And with that Hermione walked off with Viktor, leaving a very confused wizard in her wake.

"What in the bloody hell is going on?" Harry asked to himself as he watched Hermione sit down at a table with Viktor, giggling at whatever the Bulgarian said.

" _ **It looks like Hermione is over it."**_ Veronique smirked as she approached a brooding Fleur, watching Hermione and Viktor whispering and touching each other playfully. " _ **And it looks like Viktor is going to do some cherry picking."**_

" _ **Shut up."**_ Fleur growled.

" _ **This doesn't seem like Hermione."**_ Odette chimed in with a frown. She had been observing the pair herself over the course of the night and Hermione Granger was indeed acting strangely; she was practically joined at the hip, flirting with Viktor Krum, and the way she dismissed Fleur was so unlike her.

Fleur's eyes flickered to Odette before going back to Hermione and Viktor. " _ **What do you mean?"**_

" _ **She wasn't acting like this earlier . . . she's never acted this way towards Viktor or you."**_

Veronique smirked in response. _**"Not that you know of."**_

Fleur's bright blue eyes glared at the raven-haired girl, but her little sister was already on it. " _ **Shut up Veronique, you have no idea what you're talking about."**_

Veronique rolled her eyes while Odette furrowed her brow and Fleur had to bite her tongue as she watched Hermione whisper something into Viktor's ear while her hand ran up his leg. " _ **It's almost as if . . ."**_ Odette spoke as a dark look overcame Viktor's face and he grabbed Hermione's hand to lead the giggling Gryffindor outside. " _ **She has been drugged by a love potion."**_

Fleur's eyes widened at the statement, her eyes starting to glow a dangerous blue as the two disappeared outside. " _ **That filthy fucking brute!"**_ Fleur growled as she went after the pair. That was it, it had to be, there was no way Hermione would do this to her. Viktor Krum had slipped a love potion in Hermione's Granger's drink and was going to take advantage of HER Gryffindor.

Fleur could vaguely hear her name being called out as her friends and sister followed closely behind her and upon hearing the commotion Harry and company turned their heads, seeing Fleur storm out after Hermione and Viktor.

Ginny furrowed her brow at the veela's rushing outside. "What the bloody hell is going on?"

"I don't know, but I don't think it's anything good." Harry spoke as he shot up from his seat and ran after the girls with Ginny and Ron in tow.

" _ **Fleur!"**_ Gabrielle called after her sister, but there was nothing anyone could do to deter Fleur from her mission; she would be damned if she let Viktor Krum take advantage of Hermione.

Fleur's golden hair whipped around as she searched for the pair, they were nowhere in sight, but her ears pricked when she heard Hermione's giggles and she was off in that direction with a group of Gryffindors and veela close behind.

" _ **You're over reacting!"**_ Veronique yelled after Fleur, but the champion blew her friend off as she marched towards the garden.

What she saw next made Fleur pause in her steps, nothing could prepare her for she was witnessing. Her heart shattered into a million pieces and it felt like everything was going in slow motion. Viktor Krum had Hermione Granger pinned to a wall, his thick lips sloppily kissing and covering Hermione's ruby red ones. Hermione's hands gripped the back of his red uniform while Viktor's roamed up her body; it felt like all of Fleur's worst nightmares were coming true right before her eyes.

She heard a soft moan slip past Hermione's lips as Viktor made his way down to her neck and sucked on the soft flesh while his hands worked on the front of the dress. "Don't stop." Hermione spoke out breathlessly and that was enough to make the veela fully snap.

Without a second thought Fleur marched up to Viktor and tapped him in on his shoulder. The seeker turned around confused only to be met with glowing blue eyes that drifted down to the tent in his pants, showing how thoroughly excited he was by Fleur's Gryffindor.

"You bourjois pig!" Fleur growled as she gripped his shoulders and kneed him hard in the crotch, making the Bulgarian bend over, his face turning a bright red as he cupped his member. That wasn't even close enough to satiate Fleur's veela so she followed with a quick hard right hook to his jaw that sent him toppling over to the ground.

"Viktor!" Hermione cried out, but Fleur grabbed the brunette's hand, pulling her behind her protectively even though Hermione fought to get past her to get to the Bulgarian.

"You spiked 'er drink you filzy animal!" She spat out at the seeker struggling to get up.

"You hurt him!" Hermione cried out, but Fleur ignored her.

"Hold 'er back!" Fleur barked out to her shocked flock and Odette hesitantly complied. "She needs an antidote."

"You fucking veela!" Viktor finally yelled out, anger filling his veins at seeing Hermione being held back and kept from him. "Let her go!"

Fleur shoved him back before he could get too far and pulled out her wand, holding it to his neck. "Stay back!"

"What in the bloody hell is going on here!?" Harry asked when he saw his friend being held back by a very conflicted Odette.

"You can't keep us apart!" Viktor spat out, pulling out his own wand. "Now step aside!"

"I would rather die." Fleur spoke through gritted teeth, keeping her aim steady.

"Fleur! Viktor! Stop!" Harry yelled as he jumped between the two other champions. "What is this about!?"

"'e spiked her drink wiz love potion." Fleur spat on the ground at Viktors feet to show her disgust. "'e was going to rape 'er!"

"You did what!?" Ron cried out, his face turning red upon this revelation. "That's my bloody friend you git!"

Before anyone knew what was happening Ron went running at Viktor full speed and tackled the seeker in a fit of rage. The two started wresting on the ground, their nice suits getting covered in mud as each struggled to gain the upper hand, and threw punches whenever they got the chance.

"Don't hurt him!" Hermione cried out in the background while Ginny tried to help Odette hold her back.

"Merlin Hermione! Calm down!" Ginny whined as Harry tried to pull Viktor and Ron apart.

A few Durmstrang students heard the commotion and upon what they thought they saw was Viktor being teamed up on by Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley they ran over with their dates in tow.

"Get off him!" A brunette Bulgarian growled out as he grabbed Harry and punched him hard in the eye, breaking his glasses and sending the boy who lived stumbling back.

"Hey!" Ginny shouted when she saw the blow and let go of Hermione to run up to the Bulgarian towering over the Hogwarts Champion. She shoved the boy away and when he went to go after Harry once more she kicked him hard between the legs, making him bellow and kneel over while his date tackled Ginny to the ground.

"Oi!" Seamus Finnigan yelled from the stairwell with a bunch of Hogwarts students behind him. "They're ganging up on Harry!"

It was in that moment everything turned from bad to worse as Gryffindors, Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, and even Slytherins came pouring down the steps and ran straight at the Durmstrang students, clashing with the foreigners. What was meant to be a small quarrel between two people became a quick escalation of school rivalry. It was a complete mess.

As witches and wizards threw each other around in their very expensive attire and exchanged blows Fleur grabbed Hermione and kept one arm protectively around her to keep her back from the chaos. Out of the corner of her eye she watched as Viktor finally flipped Ron around, mounted the Weasley, and started to punch him in the face over and over again.

"Oh no you don't." Fleur growled as she took careful aim with her wand. "Incarcerous!"

Viktor was suddenly wrapped in thick ropes with his arms to his sides, leaving Ron to wiggle out from under him with a bloody nose. "Thanks Fleur." Ron grinned with blood streaming down his face only to be tackled by another Durmstrang student from behind.

In the background Fleur could hear Veronique yell out, "Ow, zat ees my 'air you stupid bitch!"

Fleur turned to see the raven-haired girl now engaged in a fight with one of the Durmstrang boys dates, throwing the smaller blonde girl off of her. The Beuxbatons students were doing their best to stay out of the fight that was becoming bigger and bigger, but Gabrielle received a blow to her eye from a stray elbow. "Mon Dieu!" The younger Delacour cried out as she held her left eye while Odette let out a growl and punched the girl who would dare to even accidentally hurt her girlfriend square in the jaw.

Another person crashed into the younger Delacour, making the usually reserved veela snap. "Zat ees eet!" Gabrielle yelled out before she threw herself at the person who was unlucky enough to run into her.

"Gabrielle!" Fleur cried out when a girl took her little sister to the ground, temporarily pulling her attention from Hermione, which was just enough for the brunette to slip out of her hold and go running to Viktor.

Fleur looked between her sister who was now on top of the other girl, punching her in the face, then back to Hermione kneeling next to Viktor, trying to undo his ties and when she decided her sister could handle her own she went running after the Gryffindor. "'Ermione! Stop zis! Sil vous plait!" Fleur pleaded with the crazed prefect as she crouched down and tried to pull Hermione away.

"Get off!" Hermione yelled as she threw her elbow back, hitting Fleur right in the mouth, sending the Beuxbatons champion stumbling back onto her butt.

The taste of copper invaded Fleur's mouth and she put a hand to her lower lip in shock. She pulled it away to see red liquid on her fingertips and felt a pang in her chest, but shook her head before she went back to Hermione, forcibly grabbing the prodigy's arm as she pulled her away. "Zis ees not you 'Ermione!" Fleur spoke into Hermione's ear as she wrapped her arms around the brunette's waist from behind while Hermione struggled and fought to get out of Fleur's grasp to get back to Viktor.

"Let me go!" Hermione cried out desperately, but Fleur held her ground, tightening her hold on the Gryffindor.

"Non!"

"Have you all gone mad!? Stop!" Came a booming authorative voice that everyone ignored, but a sharp whistle cut through the chaos making all of the students pause, some in mid swing, to see a very angry and unamused Professor McGonagall.

"What is the meaning of this?" McGonagall spoke in an eerily calm voice, glaring at the bloodied and drunk students with disheveled gowns and suits.

"Viktor spiked Mione's drink with love potion!" Ron cried out, making Minerva furrow her brows.

"C'est vrai." Fleur nodded her head, still struggling to hold Hermione back while the professor swept over to Hermione to look into her eyes.

"Please Professor! Tell her to let me go!" Hermione cried, desperate to return to the seeker who was struggling to get to her.

McGonagall sighed before she walked over to Viktor, observing the Bulgarian going berserk in his ropes. "They've both been drugged and by a very strong love potion at that."

"Bullshit." Fleur spat out. "Eef 'e ees drugged 'e did eet to 'imself to maintain 'is innocence."

"Miss Delacour, please refrain from spouting such accusations." McGonagall growled. "If I could, I would disqualify all three of you for such behavior." Harry flinched when Minerva shot him a scolding look, making the boy who lived shrink in on himself. "I expected better from you champions. This tournament was supposed to support international magical cooperation between the three schools!"

"They started it." Ron grumbled, but cowered away when McGonagall gave him a scathing look.

"Detention. For all of you."

Everyone let out groans, but stopped their whining when the Professor raised a threatening eyebrow. "Everyone return to your dorms immediately."

The students started to trudge away, but Fleur kept a firm hold on Hermione, refusing to let the prefect go.

"I can take things from here Miss Delacour." Minerva spoke softly, placing her hand on Fleur's forearm.

Fleur tensed, looking from McGonagall to Hermione then to Viktor with a growl.

"Come on Fleur. She can 'andle zis." Gabrielle sighed as she approached her over protective sister.

"Fine." Fleur finally complied and let go of Hermione. "But don't let 'im anywhere near 'er."

McGonagall smiled softly at the champion, she always had a soft spot for Hermione Granger and it was nice to see someone be so protective of her. "I won't."

Fleur nodded her head and with one final glare in Viktor's direction she started to walk back to the carriage with her classmates.

"Zanks for ze detention Fleur." Veronique glared over at the blonde while she held her hand under her nose to try to slow the blood pouring from it. "I 'ope eet was worth eet."

"Eet was." Fleur put up her nose as they continued on, making Gabrielle and Odette sigh, both sporting black eyes.

"Oi! Delacour!" Ginny yelled from across the way with Harry and Ron in tow.

Fleur snapped her head in the chaser's direction with her brows furrowed. "Oui?"

"Thanks for the good time. Best ball ever!" Ginny laughed and Harry shook his head while Fleur smiled, revealing her normally pristine teeth glistening with her own blood to Ginny.

Gabrielle rolled her eyes at the red-head's compliment. "Don't encourage 'er."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter got so out of control so quickly haha but it was so much fun to write the last scene and i just couldn't resist ironically naming the chapter 'The Battle of Hogwarts'. It wasn't as deadly of a fight as in the books, but it was still crazy lol Anyways, I would love to hear your guys' thoughts on the chapter :)


	20. Bottom Of The Deep Blue Sea

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song that inspired this chapter is Bottom of the deep blue sea by Missio. I think it fits quite perfectly :)

_The berth surrounding my body crushing every bit of bone_   
_The salt, it seeps in through the pores of my open skin_   
_I wait on you inside the bottom of the deep blue sea_   
_I wait on you inside the bottom of the deep blue'_

When Hermione awoke she took in her surroundings, completely perplexed when she realized she was once more in the infirmary with a very amused Ginevra Weasley watching her with a black eye and a smirk.

"How in the bloody hell did I end up in here again?" Hermione groaned as she sat up; she had a bit of a headache, but nothing compared to the first time she wound up in the hospital wing.

"Feels like déjà vu eh?" Ginny grinned.

Hermione just narrowed her eyes at her friend; once more she had no idea how she got there and Ginny Weasley was the only one there to give her answers. "How did I get here and what happened to your face?"

"Do you want the short version or the long one?"

"The short one, because I know how you like to drone on." Hermione grumbled.

"I do not drone on!"

"Mione!" Ron cried out and all the snacks he was carrying fell to the ground as he and Harry entered the infirmary. "You're awake!" He shouted as he practically threw his body into hers to pull the golden girl into a hug.

Ginny laughed when she saw Hermione's face start to get red from lack of oxygen. "You're going to suffocate her if you don't let go Ron."

"Oh." Ron's face almost matched Hermione's as he quickly released the brunette from his tight hold. "Sorry bout that Mione."

"You feeling alright?" Harry asked with a tilt of his head as he approached the bedside.

Hermione sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance. "I would be feeling better if someone would bloody tell me what is going on."

"You were poisoned." Ron frowned.

Hermione shot her head up, looking at Ron with wide amber eyes. "Poisoned?"

Ginny groaned at her brother's misleading statement. "She wasn't poisoned Ron. She was slipped a love potion."

Hermione's eyes widened even more at the revelation. "Someone slipped me a love potion!? Who!?"

Ginny let out a sigh. "No one knows."

"How is that possible?" Hermione scoffed as she crossed her arms. "It should be simple enough. Who was I suddenly so in love with?"

"Viktor."

"Viktor!?" Hermione cried out; she trusted the Bulgarian and he seemed so sweet, she couldn't believe he would do such a thing to her.

"But he was drugged too Mione." Harry quickly jumped in when he saw Hermione's imagination go wild.

Hermione furrowed her brows, even more confused. "He was? Did we . . .?"

"Nah, you guys went outside to snog I'm assuming and Fleur beat his ass." Ginny grinned. "That girl has a hell of a right hook."

"Fleur did what?" Hermione asked with wide eyes.

"Yeah, she pretty much started what everyone is calling The Battle of Hogwarts." Ron laughed.

Harry grinned over at the older Weasley. "I think you played a bit of a part in that one when you tackled Viktor mate."

"Oi! I thought he drugged Mione! I couldn't let him get away with that!"

"So, wait, Fleur started a big fight with the help of Ron?" Hermione asked with her heart racing in her chest; Fleur helped her . . . again? Even after she had ignored her over such a stupid misunderstanding?

"Yeah." Ron nodded his head. "She was right pissed when she found out someone slipped you a love potion. Of course, she thought Viktor did it. Poor bloke is a couple beds down with a swollen jaw . . . I'm surprised they didn't have to do more work on him."

"Oh." Hermione blushed as she looked down at the sheets. "I suppose I should thank her."

"And maybe apologize." Harry mumbled under his breath, but it wasn't quiet enough for Hermione to miss it.

"Yes, I suppose that too Harry." Hermione replied tersely; apologizing was still a foreign concept to her.

Harry just grinned in response while Hermione looked over to Ginny sporting that same annoying grin. "You know, this still doesn't explain your black eye Ginny."

"Oh, well this is where it gets fun." Ginny grinned and the boys let out a collective sigh. "After Fleur punched Viktor and told us you had been slipped a love potion Ron proceeded to tackle Krum to the ground and when Harry tried to pull Ron off some Durmstrang students came and punched Harry. I guess they thought they were ganging up on Krum and so I kicked the guy straight in the bollocks and then all Hell broke loose." Ginny laughed. "All the Hogwarts students, even Slytherins came down and started fighting the Durmstrang students, the Beuxbatons eventually jumped in and honestly, I don't have the foggiest as to who gave me the black eye."

"McGonagall is still mad about it." Harry groaned. "We all have detention for the rest of the week and aren't allowed to use magic to fix ourselves as extra punishment."

"Did um . . ." Hermione cleared her throat, her blush returning. "Did Fleur get hurt?"

"Well you did split her lip when she tried to pull you off Krum, but except for that, not really." Ginny shrugged.

Hermione paled and felt a new wave of guilt hit her. "I did?"

"Yeah, but she seemed alright." Harry jumped in before Hermione could beat herself up too much.

Hermione fisted the sheets tightly in her hands; she knew she should have said something to Fleur sooner and perhaps if she hadn't been so stubborn this whole big brawl wouldn't have happened. "I need to go see her." Hermione spoke softly as she started to get out of the bed.

"Oh no you don't missy!" Madam Pomfrey frowned as she approached the group of students. "You need to stay in bed for at least two more days."

"But-"

"No buts!" Madam Pomfrey grumbled as she pointed a long skinny finger in the brunette's face, making the Gryffindor huff and slump back in the bed with her arms crossed; she knew there was no arguing with the school nurse. "You were drugged with a strong love potion and I need to make sure it's completely out of your system before I let you go."

"It was that strong?" Ginny asked with wide eyes.

"Yes dear." The nurse sighed as she pulled out her wand and started to check up on Hermione. "Whoever did this either had no idea what they were doing or were entirely too good at it."

/

"I am not apologizing." Fleur growled as she sat across from Dumbledore in his office with her arms crossed.

"What Fleur means to say . . ." Madame Maxime tried to smooth the situation over when she saw Karkaroff bristle at the blonde's blatant defiance.

"I know what I meant to say." Fleur snapped, making her headmistress scowl. "Viktor drugged 'Ermione and I will not apologize to 'im or 'is 'eadmaster."

"This is an outrage!" Karkaroff roared, unable to hold himself back anymore with the veela acting so arrogantly. "She attacked Viktor to get an unfair advantage! She should be disqualified!"

Fleur scoffed in response, looking down at her nails in a bored manner. "As eef I would need to stoop to cheating to beat zat brute."

"Fleur!" Madame Maxime scolded her student, very afraid that she may very well be disqualified for the fight. "I apologize monsieur, Fleur 'as been acting oddly but I'm sure eet was all a misunderstanding. Surely you do not really believe she would cheat."

"She did." Karkaroff growled and Maxime narrowed her eyes at his tone.

"I assure you my student would not do such a zing. At Beuxbatons our student 'ave integrity; Fleur simply saw someone een danger and 'elped."

"Are you implying my students don't have integrity?" Karkaroff spoke through gritted teeth.

"I'm sure she is not implying such a thing." Dumbledore finally jumped in, looking between the two feuding adults.

"But eef ze shoe fits." Fleur mumbled, making both Karkaroff and Maxime send her a deadly glare.

"I want her disqualified!" Karkaroff shouted, his face turning red from anger.

"Unfortunately, that is not a possibility." Bartemius Crouch sighed as he entered Dumbledore's office. "Once a champion has been selected by the Goblet of Fire, he or she is obligated to see the Tournament through to the end. The placing of your name in the Goblet constitutes a binding, magical contract."

A smug look crossed Fleur's face when she saw the utter outrage bubbling beneath the surface of Karkaroff's face. "This can not be. This can not stand! I demand she at least be punished!"

"Oh, she will." Madame Maxime glared down at the blonde, making Fleur scowl and cross her arms once more.

"And Viktor doesn't? 'E drugged a girl and was going to take advantage of 'er."

"Ah, Miss Delacour, you forget Viktor was drugged too." Dumbledore spoke up calmly, looking at her behind his spectacles. "But I suppose when love is involved things are not always seen very clearly."

"Love?" Fleur scoffed. "I 'ave no idea what you are talking about."

"Of course." Dumbledore chuckled. "My mistake."

Fleur's arctic eyes shifted off to the side, her cheeks heating up at Dumbledore's knowing stare and chuckle. "Am I free to go now?"

"Yes Miss Delacour. You're free to go." Dumbledore smiled, ignoring the incredulous look Karkaroff gave him while Fleur stood up and started to leave with her nose in the air, but stopped when she heard Dumbledore clear his throat. "Perhaps you could stop by the medical wing; I'm sure Miss Granger would like to thank you."

Fleur's cheeks heated up once more at the statement. "Per'aps."

Fleur swept out of the office and went to go back to the carriage, but stuttered in her steps to look behind her shoulder up the steps that would lead her to Hermione Granger. _'I suppose zere wouldn't be any 'arm een simply checking on 'er . . .'_ Fleur thought to herself as she chewed on her lower lip and was about to head to the medical wing when the loud clicking of her headmistress' heals made her ears perk. "You will go nowhere near zat medical wing eef you know what ees good for you. I will not 'ave you anywhere near Viktor Krum except for when absolutely necessary and to make sure you don't go starting any trouble you will be serving detention and will be limited to ze carriage except for meal times."

"But-" Fleur started to protest, but when she saw that dangerous look in her headmistress' eyes she let out a sigh and complied, following the significantly larger woman back to the carriage with her head down.

/

A couple days later Hermione lay in the infirmary as the crisp late January air washed over her and let out an irritated sigh. She hated laying around doing nothing, it was making her go stir-crazy, and in all honesty, she really wanted to see Fleur to apologize for everything, but with the ever watchful eye of Madam Pomfrey on her the task was impossible.

"Hey there Hermione." Harry grinned as he walked up to her bedside. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm going bloody bonkers in here." Hermione grumbled. "She won't let me leave and I just want to-"

"See Fleur?" Harry smiled knowingly while a blush spread across Hermione's cheeks.

"Yes." Hermione admitted bashfully. "I feel horrible about everything. Have you seen her?"

Harry shook his head as he took a seat. "No, I haven't seen her around the castle or even at mealtimes. It's weird."

"Do you think . . ." Hermione gulped nervously. "She's cross with me?"

Harry just chuckled in response. "No, I highly doubt it. Last time I saw her she was holding onto you for dear life just to keep you away from Krum."

"Then why hasn't she come to see me?" Hermione huffed.

"I haven't the foggiest." Harry shrugged, but when he saw the despondent look on his friend's face he knew what he had to do. "Do you want me to go see if I can find her?"

"I couldn't ask you to do that Harry."

"You don't have to." Harry grinned. "The second task is tomorrow and you two really should talk before she jumps back into danger."

Hermione's amber eyes widened. "The second task is tomorrow?"

"Yup." Harry laughed as he stood up. "So, you better start working on your apology while I go find her."

"Thanks Harry." Hermione sighed. "You really are the best."

"I know." Harry smirked as he walked out of the hospital wing and headed straight for the Beuxbatons carriage where he saw someone scrubbing at the wheels with a sponge and bucket next to them. "Fleur?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow, making the other champion turn to look at him and show her exhaustion written all over her face. "What in the bloody hell are you doing?"

"Zis ees my punishment." Fleur grumbled as she threw the sponge into the bucket and tried to fix her messy hair. "Madame Maxime 'as me doing chores ze muggle way een 'opes of breaking me and getting me to apologize to zat Bulgarian and 'is 'eadmaster."

"And I'm guessing that's not going to happen." Harry laughed as Fleur straightened her uniform and tried to wipe off some of the mud that got on it.

"You guessed right." Fleur scowled as she glared at the carriage as if she could see right through it to Madame Maxime. "I just 'ave to endure zis for one more day until ze second task."

"So, this is why I haven't seen you around."

"Oui." Fleur nodded as she leaned back against the carriage with a sigh. "I am not allowed anywhere near ze castle. She was going to allow me to spend mealtimes zere, but 'as changed 'er mind and made me take my meals between chores, studies, and practice 'ere."

Hary cringed at the blonde's punishment. "That sounds bloody awful."

"Eet ees." Fleur grumbled as she looked off to the side to Hogwarts up to where she knew Hermione must be. "'Ow ees 'ermione doing?"

A grin spread across Harry's face at Fleur's question. "She's going stir crazy. Madam Pomfrey won't let her leave the hospital wing and trust me, that woman is hard to get past."

"Ah, I see." Fleur mumbled.

"That hasn't stopped her from trying to escape though. . ." Harry trailed off, watching as a small smile tugged at the corners of Fleur's lips; Hermione was almost as stubborn as she is. "To see you."

Fleur's arctic eyes widened at the statement and turned to look at Harry smiling at her. "Moi?"

"Yes Fleur. She feels bloody awful about everything. I told you she was stubborn, but she would eventually come around."

"I wish I could come visit 'er, but Madame Maxime 'as eyes and ears everywhere." Fleur sighed, fighting everything in her to go to the Gryffindor. "She 'as zreatened me wiz detention for ze rest of ze year eef I go anywhere near zat 'ospital wing while Viktor ees zere."

"I may have a way around that." Harry grinned mischievously, making Fleur raise an eyebrow.

"I'm listening."

"You stay here. I'll be right back." Fleur just nodded her head in agreement, curious as to what Harry was up to as she watched the boy who lived run off.

Harry returned shortly after with folded piece of paper in hand and opened it up, his grin growing wider when he saw the coast was clear. "It looks like Madame Maxime is at Hagrid's Hutt . . . now is the perfect time."

Fleur looked over Harry's shoulder to see Madame Maxime's name next to Hagrid's. "What ess zis?"

"Marauders map." Harry smirked while Fleur looked impressed. "Now come on, we have to go before she gets back and this . . " Harry threw a fabric around their heads and huddled close to the other champion. "Will take care of us being caught."

Fleur's eyes widened when realization hit her. "Ees zis an invisibility cloak?"

"Yup. It comes in handy in times like these."

"You know, I 'ave 'eard of ze many adventures of 'Arry Potter while I 'ave been 'ere." Fleur grinned over at the raven-haired boy. "Eet ees an 'onor to be a part of one of zem."

Harry laughed as they walked up the steps to the infirmary. "I guess you're one of us now."

Fleur felt her smile widen and her heart warm at the statement as they walked into the medical wing past some students and pulled off the cloak.

"Where ees she?" Fleur asked as she looked around while Harry looked at the vacant bed with a furrowed brow.

"She was just here."

"That professor came in vith that red-head friend of yours." Viktor spoke softly as walked over to the pair. "She said the headmaster needed to see them."

Fleur narrowed her eyes at the seeker, already feeling enraged by just the sight of him. "As eef I would believe you."

Viktor sighed in response. "Vhy vould I make that up?"

"I don't know. Why would you slip 'ermione a love potion?" Fleur growled as she took a threatening step forward while Harry jumped between the pair.

"I did not drug her." Viktor grumbled. "I vould never do that; Hermione does not like me and I have accepted that even though I find it hard to accept she vould like someone like you."

"What ees zat supposed to mean?" Fleur spat out as her eyes started to glow dangerously.

"Oi, Fleur, let's try to keep this civil yeah?" Harry stood face to face with the enraged veela, trying to calm the blonde down. "I know you two don't care for each other, but this is getting ridiculous. Viktor is just trying to help and I'm sure he didn't mean what he just said. Right Viktor?" Harry asked as he looked over his shoulder, giving the seeker a pointed look.

Viktor just took a step back and crossed his arms, looking off to the side when Madame Pomfrey scurried over to him. "I thought I told you to stay in bed Mr. Krum! You need your rest before the task."

"Oui." Fleur smirked. "Eet would be a shame eef you got 'urt again. 'Ow ees your jaw by ze way? Still sore?"

Viktor let out a growl, but the nurse was having none of it and grabbed him by his arm to lead him back to his bed while Harry sighed. "Come on Fleur." Harry mumbled as he pulled out his map to see Madame Maxime heading back to the carriage. "We need to get you back before we're caught."

"Fine." Fleur grumbled as Harry threw the cloak over their heads. "'e got lucky zis time."

/

It was the morning of the second task and Fleur was finally allowed entrance into Hogwarts by her headmistress for a hearty breakfast, but that was the last thing on her mind as she sat at the Ravenclaw table. Her vibrant azures were searching the Gryffindor table while her hand nervously fiddled with the silver heart necklace meant for Hermione around her neck only to see Harry Potter with the same worried look on his face absent the rest of the golden trio. They both shared a look and an understanding passed between them.

Fleur had been worried of what might be taken for the second task and now the stakes were even higher when she realized it was not objects they would be going to get, but actually living breathing people and not just any person. Hermione Granger.

She pushed away her food when she realized Hermione was probably floating at the bottom of a lake somewhere and there was nothing she could do about it until the task started.

" _ **You should eat something Fleur. You can't do another task on an empty stomach."**_ Gabrielle frowned, but Fleur just crossed her arms.

" _ **I'm not hungry."**_

" _ **Don't tell me you're still all bent out of shape about that nerd."**_ Veronique scoffed.

Fleur shot the wicked witch a sharp glare meant to cut, but it rolled right off of Veronique, further irritating the already upset veela. " _ **I have to go."**_

" _ **The task doesn't start for another hour."**_ Odette frowned up at her alpha, she could feel Fleur's nerves radiating off of her. " _ **You should try to relax before the task."**_

" _ **I don't need to relax."**_ Fleur shot back with a scowl. " _ **I need to get back what they took."**_

" _ **Is it your journal?"**_ Veronique smirked. " _ **It has to be if you're this worried."**_

" _ **No, something more valuable than that."**_ Fleur mumbled before she left to go outside, leaving a very perplexed raven-haired girl in her wake.

/

Fleur spent the next hour pacing back and forth on the dock in front of the water, impatiently waiting for the rest of the champions to arrive and for the task to start so she could go get Hermione Granger back, but it felt as if time was dragging on.

"You couldn't stay away either huh?" Harry sighed as he approached the clearly ruffled veela.

"I 'ave 'alf a mind to jump een right now to get 'er back." Fleur grumbled and Harry smiled in response.

"Just five more minutes Fleur." Harry spoke as he watched people start filing into the stands while the headmasters talked amongst themselves. "Then we can go get them back."

"Well eef Viktor would get 'ere zey might let us start early." Fleur mumbled as she crossed her arms, glaring out at the water.

"I doubt it." Harry scoffed as he pulled out his gillyweed and played with it in his hands, feeling his own adrenaline starting to pick up as the second task grew closer. He should be used to things like this by now, but he couldn't help feeling worried for his friends; he didn't think they would get dragged into the tournament.

Viktor finally made his entrance and walked past the other champions, sharing a heated glare with Fleur for a moment before they all got into position and pulled off their clothing so they were in their swimsuits, waiting for Dumbledore to give them the word to go.

"Welcome to the second task." Dumbledore's voice boomed through the stands, putting the champions on edge. "Last night something was stolen from each of our champions, a treasure of sorts." Fleur stepped closer to the edge of the dock at the mention of her stolen treasure, wrapping her fingers around the necklace she refused to take off even for the task. "These three treasures, one for each champion, now lie at the bottom of the black lake. In order to win, each champion needs only to find their treasure and return to the surface. Simple enough . . . except for this . . . they will have but one hour to do so and one hour only. After that they will be on their own. No magic will save them."

Harry gulped a little nervously at the mention of the last part, but steeled what courage he had all the same; there was no way he would leave his best mate at the bottom of a lake. He looked over to Fleur to see her gripping her necklace tightly as she looked out at the lake determinedly, seemingly completely unphased by the danger that waited for her.

"You may begin at the sound of the cannon."

The second the cannon went off Fleur was the first one to dive off the dock, not even bothering to cast her spell before she jumped in while Harry struggled to gulp down the disgusting slimy gillyweed and Viktor transformed himself into a half shark.

The icy water jolted Fleur the second she hit the liquid, but she was quick to cast a bubble-head charm along with a warming spell to ease her aching muscles from the frigid waters. As she strained her eyes to try to look around she realized why it was called the black lake; it was impossible to see more than one foot in front of you, but she didn't let that deter her from her mission. Hermione was somewhere at the bottom of this lake and she was not going to leave her there any longer than necessary.

She swam as fast as her body would allow and was suddenly grateful for the endurance training Madame Maxime put her through as she swam through the murky water. She felt something tickle her ankle, but she paid it no mind and pushed onward, but that same material that was tickling her suddenly wrapped around her ankle and pulled her down.

Fleur let out a growl and turned to see the seaweed she was swimming above shooting out and wrapping around her other ankle and midsection, constricting around her so tightly she feared it might break one of her ribs. She tried to ignore the feeling of her bones being crushed as she lifted her wand to shoot out a spell, but another stray piece of seaweed shot out and wrapped around her wrists, halting her movement.

She faught hard against her binding, but the more she struggled the stronger the seaweed held onto her. She was descending further and further into the lake, fighting with every ounce of strength she had in her, but it wasn't enough. "Let me go!" Fleur yelled through the bubble charm, but it was useless or it seemed to be until a bright light shot past her, cutting through the wicked underwater plant life.

She looked up to see Harry cutting through the rest of the seaweed with another spell and quickly swam away, far from its reach, once she was free. "Zank you 'Arry." Fleur smiled gratefully at the other champion.

"Well I can't very well save Hermione AND Ron." Harry laughed and Fleur rolled her eyes as they swam together now, straining their eyes and ears for any sign of Hermione or Ron.

Fleur came to an abrupt stop when her advanced hearing picked up on a soft melody, the same one that emitted from the egg and quickly grabbed Harry's ankle before he went too far.

Harry turned to the veela, confusion written all over his face, but Fleur put a finger to her mouth, signaling for him to be quiet before she pointed to her ear and Harry picked up on the hint, straining to listen for any sounds, but he heard nothing. He shook his head and Fleur sighed, nodding her head to the left, and swam towards the sound with Harry Potter close behind.

When the ominous melody grew louder Fleur paused again and looked down to see three blurry figures floating with a chain wrapped around their ankle and mermaids swimming around them with spears.  
Fleur was able to make out brown hair and took off in the direction as fast as her already tired limbs would allow and when she saw Hermione Granger up close with her face pale and eyes closed she placed a hand on the prefects cheek, running her thumb along her high cheekbone.

' _I will get you out of 'ere 'Ermione. I am sorry zey used you for zis.'_ Fleur sighed before shooting out a diffindo spell at the chain on Hermione's ankle, freeing the prodigy, and leaving her to float into Fleur's waiting arms.

She pulled the cold prefect to her and looked over to see Harry freeing his friend; they nodded at each other before the went to leave, but a shark head came barreling towards Fleur. She pulled Hermione closer to her, trying to shield the prefect from the creature and raised her wand to shoot a spell, but the shark moved away at the last second and gnawed on the chain holding the last person to the bottom of the lake, a young Durmstrang boy.

Fleur let out a growl and had half a mind to hex the Bulgarian for trying to startle her, but Harry shook his head at her so with a sigh she swam back towards the dock.

She had almost reached the surface when she heard gurgling behind her, making her turn to see Harry being attacked by a bunch of grindylows with little spears, jabbing at him while he struggled to fend them off.

She glanced up to see the light peeking through the surface of the water; she was so close, she could win and get Hermione to safety, but when she heard Harry let out a painful groan her decision was made for her. ' _Damn conscience . . .'_ Fleur thought to herself with a grumble as she pushed Hermione towards the surface and once she saw the brunette's legs kicking she took off towards Harry.

"Relashio!" Fleur yelled out as a blue light shot from her wand, immobilizing the grindylows, and making them drift away from Harry, freeing the injured champion.

"Thanks." Harry mumbled tiredly as he struggled to swim the rest of the way with Ron.

Fleur took note of Harry's exhaustion that almost matched her own and grabbed Ron's arm, pulling him from Harry, and pushing him towards the surface so Harry was free to make it to the top. She stayed a little behind Harry to make sure he made it to the surface and let out a relieved sigh when he broke for air, but right as she was about to do the same something grabbed her ankle and yanked her down.

' _Zese pesky zings just don't give up!'_ Fleur thought to herself with an irritated growl as she turned to shoot off a spell, but another Grindylow knocked the wand from her hand with its spear.

Fleur scrambled to grab her wand floating away from her; her fingertips barely grazed the familiar wood when another piece of seaweed shot up and gripped her wrist once more and yanked her away. The grindylows were no longer stunned and were now swarming the veela, viciously attacking the champion. One went for her necklace, but Fleur was quick to grab its entire body in her hand, her eyes glowing dangerously as she threw it away from her, but whenever she got rid of one, three more would appear. The only thing Fleur could do at this point was throw her free arm and leg around to hit the nasty little creatures in a weak attempt at fending them off, but that just made the grindylows angrier.

More seaweed came shooting up and wrapped itself around her once free upper arm, calve, and midsection, squeezing her so tight she let out a gasp. She faught against her bonds and was able to muster enough strength to reach her midsection where she frantically pulled at the seaweed while it dragged her back down into the abyss.

She gritted her teeth as she tried to rip at the seaweed, trying to ignore the tiny sharp spears poking her while she made her descent. Things were going from bad to worse, but things took the worst turn when a grindylow stabbed its spear through her bubble head charm. Fleur's artic eyes widened as water flooded the tiny space and took in a deep breath right before the bubble disappeared entirely, leaving the young champion at the mercy of the creatures of the black lake.

She started struggling harder against the seaweed, trying to block out the grindylows stabbing her sides and legs, but her struggling only made the seaweed tighten its hold on her. She was running out of oxygen at an alarming rate and when she felt as if she had completely run out her instinct was to inhale, but her lungs filled with water instead of the air she so desperately needed.

She could feel her body shutting down and hear the thumping of her heart in her ears growing softer and slower with each passing second. ' _I'm sorry 'Ermione, Gabrielle, Odette . . . I tried . . .'_ Fleur thought to herself as her vision started to go black; a euphoric feeling overpowered her dread and she embraced her inevitable doom.

/

Hermione was once again rudely awoken, but this time by freezing cold water. She looked around and her brow furrowed when she heard people cheering as she kicked her legs to keep herself afloat. She was completely perplexed as to how she got into the middle of the black lake and then Ron popped up next to her, gasping for air with Harry close behind.

"What in the bloody hell is going on?" Hermione yelled over the roar of the crowd.

"Second task." Harry replied breathlessly as they swam towards the dock.

"Great." Hermione grumbled as she pulled herself up onto dry land, looking down at her drenched robes while Harry fell down onto the ground, his chest heaving while a towel was draped around her shoulders along with Ron.

She watched as Viktor emerged from the water with another Durmstrang student and then looked around for a familiar head of blonde hair, but the last champion was nowhere in sight. "Wait . . ." Hermione spoke with furrowed brows. "Where's Fleur?"

"She was right behind us." Harry spoke through heavy breaths as he tilted his head to the side to look out at the water, but sat up when he didn't see the veela anywhere. "She was . . . "

"Harry . . . where is she?" Hermione turned even more pale than she already was as dread filled her gut when she saw the worried look on her friend's face. "Harry!" She yelled out when he didn't answer.

Harry scrambled to his feet, looking every which direction. "She should be right here."

Hermione looked back to the water, gripping the edge of the towel tightly, then to the clock that was about to run out. She knew she was supposed to stand and wait, it would be unheard of for her to interfere, but she had a nagging feeling something was very wrong. "Forget this. I'm not waiting for the bloody clock to run out." Hermione mumbled as she threw off her towel. She stripped off her drenched robe, kicked off her shoes and socks, and then to everyone's collective surprise she took off her shirt and skirt, leaving her in only her maroon lingerie.

"Ten points to Gryffindor!" Someone yelled out from the crowd where wolf whistles and cheers could be heard, but Hermione ignored them while McGonagall started yelling.

"Ms. Granger! What do you think you're doing!?"

Hermione looked over to the blushing raven-haired boy who was doing his best to avert his gaze. "Give me your wand Harry."

"S-sure Mione." Harry stuttered as he held out his wand.

Hermione paid no mind to the blushes and cheers as she gripped the wand in her hand and prayed it would heed her commands before she took in a deep breath and dove into the water with Professor McGonagall still shouting after her.

Hermione gritted her teeth, trying to ignore the biting cold that felt as if it was flowing through her veins and icing over her muscles, but pushed forward, squinting to see through the dark water for any hint of Fleur Delacour. She recalled where she shot up from and swam in the direction, pausing when she reached the destination, and looked around.

She gripped Harry's wand tighter when she felt the hair on the back of her neck stand at attention and looked down to see Fleur drifting further down into the dark waters, not even struggling as grindylows jabbed at her while her limbs were completely constricted by seaweed.

Fleur felt her consciousness slipping further and further away from her as everything started going black, she wasn't going to make it. All she could think about was all of her regrets, she had so many. There were so many things that she had done that she wished she hadn't, so many things she wished she had done or said to a certain brunette, but hadn't. She was sure she was done for and was so far gone that she didn't even register her bindings being cut from her or the grindylows being frozen mid motion. The only thing she could focus on were the small beams of light shining through the surface of the water onto her broken body and then worried amber eyes invaded her vision.

Fleur furrowed her brow as she struggled to keep her eyes open to gaze at what she assumed was an illusion, a dirty trick being played on her by her own mind. ' _Ermione . . .?'_ That was the last thought to pass through the blonde's head before she completely lost consciousness and Hermione grabbed her body, pulling Fleur close to her as she swam to the surface.

Hermione gasped for air the second she broke the surface while Fleur laid limp in her arms, spurring the Gryffindor to swim to the dock as fast as she could with one arm while the crowd let out a gasp at the sight of the mighty Fleur Delacour seemingly dead in Hermione Granger's arms.

When she got to the dock Harry and Ron quickly helped Hermione get Fleur onto dry land while she pulled herself up and Professors from across the way started rushing to them.

"She's not breathing!" Ron cried out while Hermione pushed the two boys out of the way, sitting on her knees next to the veela who was starting to turn blue.

Hermione looked at the blonde lying on her back and felt sheer dread and panic fill her entire being. ' _Please let this work.'_ Hermione thought to herself as she aimed Harry's wand at Fleur's chest. "Vivifica!" A green light shot from Hermione's wand and hit Fleur square in the chest, making the blonde's upper body jolt up a bit before it went back to lying flat on the surface.

Hermione hovered over Fleur, willing the champion to open her eyes, to take in just one breath, but Fleur remained completely still, her eyes closed with that blissful look on her face.

Hermione aimed the wand at Fleur's chest again. "Vivifica!" Fleur's upper body jolted up again and her back hit the deck with a soft thud, but the blonde's face remained neutral and her body unmoving.

A feeling of complete and utter helplessness took over Hermione as she felt tears spring into her amber eyes; her lips trembled as she watched Fleur lay lifeless on the dock. "No . . ."

"This is all my fault . . ." Harry spoke sadly as Hermione hung her head while the entire audience went dead silent.

"I'm sorry . . . I'm so sorry Fleur." Hermione spoke through gritted teeth, her hands balled into tight fists as tears slipped out of her closed eyes, but the sound of Fleur sputtering made her snap her head back up to see the blonde coughing up water that drizzled down her chin to the dock. She watched with bated breath as bright sapphire eyes fluttered opened and Fleur lurched forward into a sitting position as she took in a deep breath.

"Fleur!" Hermione cried out and lunged forward, wrapping her arms around the blonde still adjusting to her surroundings.

"'Ermione . . .?" Fleur asked as her brain struggled to catch up with what was happening. She pulled away, watching as tears of joy spilled from those same eyes she saw moments before she thought death had its cold grasp firmly wrapped around her. It wasn't an illusion; Hermione Granger really had braved the treacherous black lake to save her. She felt so overcome with so many emotions in that moment, she realized at the bottom of that dark lake there were so many things she wanted to say to the brunette and she was not going to let an opportunity slip through her fingers again. "'Ermione, I-"

Fleur was abruptly interrupted by Hermione pressing her lips against her own, making her eyes flutter shut, this time for a much more pleasant reason, as wolf whistles and cheers erupted through the stands once more, but it was all background noise to Fleur as she buried one hand in Hermione's wet hair.

Hermione's soft prodding lips sent electricity surging through the veela's veins, warming her body, and jolting her heart back into working beyond full capacity as the prefect started kissing her with urgency and something else she couldn't quite put her finger on. She had heard of the kiss of death before, but she had never heard of the kiss of life; it was as if Hermione was breathing the air she needed into her lungs, her heavenly lips reviving her mangled body and soul from the dead, saving her from the abyss she was sure would have swallowed her whole.

Hermione felt the same shock waves running rampant in her bloodstream, her heart thudding almost painfully in her chest as her hand found its way to the back of Fleur's neck, pulling her in to deepen the kiss. She could taste the salty water on the veela's lips that were now warm, reminding her that Fleur was in fact alive and breathing and not just a corpse on the ground. She had no words, had no idea what to say to Fleur in that moment, and she only hoped her actions would portray what she couldn't even begin to say.

"Ms. Granger!" McGonagall's booming voice broke their perfect moment, making the Gryffindor pull away with a blush, suddenly remembering where she was.

She turned to see McGonagall staring at her disapprovingly while Ron stood there slack jawed with Harry smirking next to him when Fleur placed a hand on her cheek, turning her attention back to the veela. "Ermione." Fleur spoke breathlessly, her artic eyes subtly glowing as she ran her thumb over Hermione's swollen lower lip. "I love you."

Hermione's golden eyes widened at the confession, looking at those bright blue neon eyes that suddenly glossed over as Fleur's hand fell from Hermione's face. Exhaustion had finally overtaken the champion and with a soft sigh Fleur fell back onto the dock and passed out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to everyone leaving comments, a kudos, bookmarking, or just bothering to read this story if you haven't already :)


	21. Dream A Little Dream Of Me

Hermione could only sit there as Fleur was carried off to the infirmary, completely dumbstruck and still processing what had just happened. When Fleur uttered those three words the wheels in her head grinded to a halt; her heart was pounding in her chest and she was sure she was red as a tomato when Harry and Ron approached her.

"You . . ." Ron spoke with wide eyes, his face even more red than Hermione's after what he and the whole school witnessed. "Fleur . . ."

Harry had a grin that was threatening to split his face in two when Ginny came barreling up to the golden trio. "Bloody Hell Mione! I didn't know you had that in you!"

"I . . . " It was hard to tell who was less articulate in the moment; Ron or Hermione. "Had what?"

Harry raised an amused eyebrow at his normally well-spoken friend. "You feeling alright Mione?"

"Y-yeah . . ." Hermione nodded her head as she slowly stood up on shaky legs. "I'm fine."

"You look worse than Ron." Ginny smirked as she pushed Ron's jaw up to close his still gaping mouth. "What did Fleur say to you to make you act so bloody weird?"

"She . . . " Hermione spoke in a strained voice as she looked back to the spot Fleur had previously occupied. "She said-"

"Miss Granger!" McGonagall's voice interrupted the clearly frazzled golden girl. "What in the world were you thinking!?"

"I'm sorry Professor. I just . . ." Hermione clenched her fists, thinking of what might have happened if she hadn't been so impulsive before she let out a sigh. "I couldn't stand by while Fleur was in trouble."

"You could have very well died too Miss Granger." McGonagall frowned; it was obvious now she was just worried about her favorite student. "What you did was incredibly dangerous and stupid. I should deduct a hundred points from Gryffindor for that stunt, but . . ." A small smile spread across McGonagall's face. "It was also very brave. Fifty points to Gryffindor." Harry and Ginny high fived behind the Professor's back at the statement. "But I do suggest you put on some clothing Miss Granger . . ." McGonagall shook her head and Hermione looked down, her cheeks heating up even more when she realized she was still clad in only her maroon lingerie.

Ron took the robe off of himself and stepped forward, averting his gaze from his nearly naked friend as he held out the garment with bright red cheeks. "You can use my robe Mione."

"Thanks Ron." Hermione mumbled as she quickly threw the robe on, earning a boo from the stands.

"Oi!" Ron yelled and turned his attention to the students leaving the stands booing Hermione regaining some clothing. "Bugger off you pervs! Have some bloody respect!"

Hermione smiled at her over protective friend, but the smile dropped from her face when the gears in her head started turning her head. "Professor . . ."

"Yes, Miss Granger?"

"Fleur . . . " Hermione chewed on her lower lip. "She's going to be alright, isn't she?"

A knowing smile crossed McGonagall's face and she nodded her head. "Thanks to you, yes. She is in the very capable hands of Madam Pomfrey now if you want to go see her." Hermione nodded her head and started heading to the castle. "But perhaps take a warm bath first and get some fresh clothes on Miss Granger."

"Y-yes Professor." Hermione blushed once more before she scurried off with her friends.

"So . . . you and Fleur eh?" Ron asked as they headed into the castle.

"Yes Ron." Ginny rolled her eyes, answering for Hermione who couldn't stop chewing on her lower lip. "Hermione and Fleur."

"Wait, don't tell me you knew about this already!" Ron cried out, making Ginny and Harry start laughing.

"Not you too mate!" Ron frowned over at Harry.

Harry just shrugged in response. "It was pretty obvious."

"Not to me . . ." Ron grumbled as he looked down at the ground then to Hermione who was unusually quiet. "So what . . . is she like your girlfriend or something Mione?"

"I um . . ." Hermione looked off to the side when three prying eyes looked to her for answers. "I don't know. It's complicated."

"It seems pretty simple to me." Harry smirked. "I mean, she did just confess her love for you."

"She what!?" Ginny asked with wide eyes, looking to Hermione who was lost in thought.

"She was out of it Harry. I . . . I doubt she really meant it." Hermione blushed.

"Oh, she bloody meant it." Harry grinned. "You should have seen her before the task. She got there before anyone else and was pacing back and forth on the dock, trying to stop herself from jumping in and getting you right away."

Hermione looked over to her friend with wide eyes. "She did?"

Harry nodded his head and Ginny looked to the brunette. "But how do you feel about her Mione?"

"I uh . . ." Hermione looked off to the side as they approached the castle. "I need to take a bath." She mumbled as she quickened her pace, leaving her friends behind so she could properly think on the matter.

"How long do you think it will take for her to say it back?" Ginny grinned as she watched the young prodigy retreat.

Harry shrugged. "Who knows, but it's obvious she has it bad otherwise she wouldn't have jumped in that horrible lake." He shivered at the mention of said lake, still feeling freezing from the water. "I think Hermione has the right idea though. I'm going to take a nice hot bath too."

"I second that notion." Ron nodded his head as he followed Harry to the boys bathroom.

/

Hermione sat in the bath, going over that moment on the dock with Fleur in her head over and over again; she could still feel the soft cold pad of Fleur's thumb running over her lower lip and see her bright blue eyes subtly glowing as she breathlessly said ' _I love you.'_

Hermione felt her cheeks heat up all over again at just the thought and felt her heart hammering in her chest. "Could she really . . . love me?"

"Is the thought of Fleur loving you so hard to grasp?" Came Luna's dreamy voice as she slowly entered the giant tub across from Hermione. "Or is the thought that you might actually love her too harder to wrap your head around?"

"I um . . ." Hermione cleared her throat. "I don't know."

"I see." Luna smiled as she played with some bubbles. "It's okay to not know. You don't always need an answer for everything."

Hermione let out a sigh, looking up at the ceiling. "But I'm sure she's going to be expecting some kind of response."

"Maybe she is, maybe she isn't." Luna shrugged. "I'm sure she'll be just as happy if you tell her how you feel."

"How I feel?" Hermione laughed mirthlessly to herself. "I can't even think straight right now."

Luna smiled over at the clearly confused Gryffindor. "Then stop trying to speak from your head and speak from your heart instead."

Hermione looked at the blonde, completely perplexed for a moment as she mulled over those words. "Speak from my heart . . ." Hermione spoke quietly as she looked down at the water and her cheeks started to heat up. She saw flashes of her and Fleur passing notes in class, Fleur sitting at her desk quietly drawing, and then drawing on her as if she was her own personal canvas. Then she saw that smile Fleur reserved just for her when they were alone, felt her fingertips dancing up her ribs, and her soft pink lips on her scar. She thought back to how the veela had been there for her, made her ditch, and go to the lake where she soothed away the pain eating her alive. Then she saw Fleur laying there lifeless on the dock and remembered how her heart shattered at the sight. "Bloody Hell . . ." Hermione spoke with wide eyes as she abruptly stood from the tub. ' _I'm in love with Fleur Delacour.'_

Luna smiled knowingly as Hermione scurried out of the tub. "Good luck." She called out as the bookworm threw on her clothes and ran for the door.

"Thanks Luna!" Hermione yelled over her shoulder as she exited the bathroom and just about ran to the infirmary, but made sure to stop by her room first.

When Hermione burst through the door she expected to be greeted with Fleur sitting up in bed, but instead met the hard glare of Madam Pomfrey checking up on a still passed out veela. "I just told Miss Delacour's classmates that she needs rest and here you come bursting into the infirmary causing a commotion. I thought you would be glad to be free of this place Miss Granger, considering how many times you tried to escape."

"S-sorry Madam Pomfrey." Hermione blushed at the light scolding. "I just wanted to check up on Fleur . . ."

"She's recovering, but needs her rest." Madam Pomfrey sighed, going to shoo Hermione out who was trying to look over the older woman's shoulder to the passed-out blonde. "Now I suggest you-"

"Please, let me stay." Hermione pleaded with the nurse. "I promise I won't disturb Fleur or anyone. I just . . ." Hermione chewed on her lower lip as she looked to the pale foreigner. "I just want to be here for her."

Madam Pomfrey eyed the young prodigy for a moment; she was sure this was the last place Hermione would like to be, but she seemed almost desperate to be next to the veela. "Fine . . ." She sighed as she stepped aside. "But I expect you to be on your best behavior."

Hermione just nodded her head and swept over to Fleur. "Thank you." She spoke softly as she sat down next to the champion, placing a medium sized wrapped package under the chair.

Madam Pomfrey simply closed the curtains to give the students some privacy as Hermione sat there with concern written all over her face. She was told Fleur would be fine, but it didn't stop her from worrying about the veela who was out cold literally and figuratively. When Hermione grabbed Fleur's hand it was still cold as ice so she was quick to cast a warming spell on the champion. ' _Can't believe that woman forgot something so simple.'_ Hermione thought with a scowl, but reprimanded herself for being too harsh on the school nurse; she had made sure Fleur was stable after all and that took priority over something as minute as how warm the Beuxbatons student was.

/

Hermione sat there for an hour, running her thumb over Fleur's now warm knuckles absentmindedly as she mulled over how she would confess her own feelings for the champion while she stared off into the distance. On the outside she seemed calm, but on the inside she was an absolute mess. She knew how she felt, she just didn't know how she was going to say it without sounding like Ron. Hermione grimaced at the thought of being reduced to a bumbling idiot, but was pulled out of her thoughts when she felt Fleur's fingers twitch in her hand and she heard a soft groan come out of those perfect lips.

Hermione perked and tensed up almost immediately, squeezing Fleur's hand a little tighter as her nerves hit her full force and bright blue eyes slowly blinked open and winced as the sunlight hit them. All Hermione could do was try to take a calming breath, but it didn't help much when Fleur's striking azure eyes clashed with amber.

"Ermione?"

"H-hey." Hermione smiled lopsidedly at the groggy blonde.

Fleur's eyes flickered to the soft hand holding hers and felt her heart thud painfully in her chest as memories from hours before crashed down on her. Her eyes went back up to Hermione who was avoiding her gaze with a blush that matched her own. "I . . ." Fleur struggled with what to say. "I am glad you're okay."

Hermione turned her gaze back to the champion with a raised eyebrow. "You're glad I'm okay? You're the one who is in the hospital wing and all you're worried about is me?"

Fleur scoffed. "I'm fine. Eet ees just a few scratches." She sat up to prove her point, but winced and let out a soft groan when she felt one of the wounds in her side threaten to burst open.

"Fleur!" Hermione scolded the French witch as she shot up from her seat and gently pushed Fleur back into a comfortable position. "You need to take it easy." Hermione sighed as she reclaimed her seat and went to take Fleur's hand again, but hesitated at the last second. She left her hand hovering over the injured champions before she started to pull back, but Fleur grabbed her hand before it could retreat too far.

"Ermione." Fleur spoke softly as she squeezed the nervous brunette's hand to make her look at her. "I zought I was going to die at ze bottom of zat 'orrid lake . . . I owe you my life."

"Think nothing of it." Hermione smiled. "If I recall correctly, you've saved my life once or twice so I think I'm still in debt to you."

A small frown overcame Fleur's features at Hermione's statement. "You don't owe me anyzing 'Ermione."

"Even so . . ." Hermione looked down and chewed on her lower lip as she pulled her hand out of Fleur's grasp to pull out the package from under her seat. "I know this is kind of late, but I guess this is as good a time as any to give you your Christmas present." Hermione tried to appear calm as she handed a shocked looking foreigner her present.

"You didn't 'ave to-"

"I wanted to." Hermione smiled a half smile at Fleur as she wrung her hands nervously in her lap while Fleur carefully started to open the package. "I wanted to give it to you earlier, but with everything that happened I thought better of it and it's fine if you don't like it. I'm sure I can return it and get you something else if you already-"

Fleur paused in the middle of her task to look up at Hermione with a small smile. "Ermione, you are rambling. Eef eet ees from you I will love eet."

Hermione felt her cheeks heat up at the mention of the word love again and felt her heart start to beat wildly out of her control while her hands started to shake; she still had no idea how she was going to confess her feelings to the gorgeous girl sitting before her, but at least the present would buy her a little more time. "A-alright."

Fleur could feel the nerves rolling off of Hermione and gave the brunette the best reassuring smile she could muster before she went back to unwrapping her present. When she finally revealed the big sketch pad and quill sitting in the box she felt her heart melt on the spot. She sat there for a moment, just looking at the present in disbelief, but Hermione clearing her throat pulled her attention from the best present she could have ever hoped to receive.

"Do you like it?"

Fleur was positively beaming when she looked to the Gryffindor sitting next to her. "No one 'as ever gotten me anyzing like zis before. Eet's perfect."

Hermione felt a slight wave of relief wash over her at Fleur's statement, but was still on edge with her looming confession hanging over her. "The um quill is actually the real present." She spoke as Fleur inspected the writing utensil carefully. "It changes color at your will and replenishes on its own."

"Really?" Fleur asked with wide eyes, looking over to the blushing brunette once more. "Zat ees amazing! Zank you 'Ermione."

"It's nothing." Hermione mumbled as she looked back down.

"Eet ees not nozing." Fleur frowned, making Hermione look up at her behind brown and blonde locks. "No one 'as ever supported me like zis . . ."

"Well, they're insane not to." Hermione smiled uneasily as she tried to steel her nerves to say what she wanted to. "You're so talented, smart, beautiful, and kind even though you try to hide it from everyone. You're so bloody perfect and . . ." Hermione let out an uneasy breath as she ran a hand through her hair while Fleur watched her curiously. "Ugh, why can't I just say it?" Hermione grumbled as she shot up from her seat and started pacing back and forth while Fleur furrowed her brow in confusion.

"Ermione, what ees eet?"

Hermione paused in her steps, turning to look at Fleur with a determined look on her face before she stepped forward and grabbed her hand. "Fleur, I love-"

"Fleur!" Odette cried out as she, Gabrielle, and Veronique entered the infirmary and threw open the curtains.

"These flowers." Hermione quickly finished as she dropped Fleur's hand who looked beyond disappointed and started to nervously fiddle with the flowers at the blonde's bedside. "The colors are so vibrant. What are these? Hydrangeas?"

"Oui." Fleur spoke as she watched Hermione almost knock over the vase. "Ermione what- Ow!" Fleur cried out when Odette barrelled up to her and hugged her a little too tightly. "Be careful!" Fleur growled while Veronique watched Fleur and Hermione with a raised eyebrow.

"Sorry." Odette blushed as she pulled away. "I did not mean to 'urt you."

"But eet serves you right." Gabrielle grumbled from behind the red-head. "Acting so recklessly. Eef you died I would 'ave to run ze clan."

A small smile flitted onto Fleur's face at her sister's statement; she had no idea her little sister would be worried about her. "I won't do eet again."

"Good." Gabrielle mumbled as she put her nose up to appear uncaring, but Fleur knew better.

"You 'ad us all worried." Veronique frowned as she stepped up to Fleur's bedside to grab her hand. "What 'appened?"

"'Arry needed my 'elp and when I was about to break ze surface zose nasty Grindylows and seaweed got me." Fleur grumbled.

"You 'elped 'Arry?" Veronique scoffed. "You do realize zis ees a competition don't you?"

Fleur rolled her eyes while Hermione slightly bristled at Veronique's comment in the background and decided she should quietly take her leave so Fleur could talk with her friends and family, but Odette had other plans. "And you!" Odette yelled out before Hermione could get too far, making the young prodigy stutter in her steps.

"Me?" Hermione asked as she turned back around to see Odette barrelling towards her and before she knew it she was wrapped up in a bone crushing hug.

"You saved 'er." Odette smiled into Hermione's shoulder. "Even zough you could have gotten een serious trouble or died, you saved 'er. Zank you so much 'Ermione! I don't know what I would 'ave done eef somezing 'appened to Fleur."

Hermione looked over Odette's shoulder for help from Fleur, but all she received was a shrug from the blonde and then the red-head pulled away just enough to kiss each of Hermione's cheeks, making the brunette blush and Fleur slightly scowl. "I-it was nothing."

"Don't be so modest." Gabrielle scoffed as she pushed past Odette to give Hermione a kiss on each cheek as well just to make the Gryffindor blush even more and to piss off her sister just a little to teach her a lesson. "Per'aps eet ees nozing to a war 'ero, but I did not see anyone else try to save 'er."

"Oui, I must agree." Veronique smirked as she stepped forward and zeroed in on the flustered bookworm. "And I must admit eet was quite ze show you put on." The raven-haired girl winked at Hermione, making Fleur growl and Hermione turn the shade of a tomato as Veronique placed a kiss on each cheek, lingering a little too long with her lips a little too close to the corner of her mouth.

"Really, it was um . . ." Hermione stuttered over her words, trying to recollect herself.

"Alright, it's dinner time you lot." Madam Pomfrey sighed as she walked up to the group. "And Ms. Delacour here needs her rest."

"But-" Fleur tried to protest; Hermione had been trying to tell her something and now she was being shooed out of the infirmary.

"No buts missy!"

Fleur let out a huff and crossed her arms while Hermione gave her a half smile, feeling completely disappointed herself that she missed her chance, but she left all the same with a wave to Fleur before the door was shut in her and the Beuxbatons students faces.

"Zat woman ees 'orrible." Gabrielle grumbled as they headed to the dining hall together.

"Yeah, but she means well I suppose." Hermione smiled half-heartedly at the young veela.

"So . . ." Veronique eyed the slightly shorter brunette. "Zat was quite ze display at ze task."

"Oh, um . . ." Hermione blushed. "I kind of had to strip down so my robes didn't weigh me down."

Veronique laughed wickedly at the statement. "I was not talking about zat even zough zat was quite a sight to see." She smirked, making Odette and Gabrielle scowl and glare at her. "I was talking about zat kiss."

"Oh, that." Hermione ducked her head, trying to hide her deepening blush. "I-"

"I did not know you two were a zing."

Gabrielle and Odette bristled even more at that statement; everyone in their group knew about Hermione and Fleur.

"I'm not quite sure what we are." Hermione mumbled, making the raven-haired girl's smile widen.

Veronique chuckled. "I've seen zat look before. I must admit Fleur ees quite confusing."

Hermione turned to the foreign witch with a furrowed brow. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Leave 'Ermione alone Veronique." Gabrielle growled at the raven-haired girl. "Eet ees obvious she does not wish to speak about zis."

"But you were comfortable enough to kiss 'er een front of ze entire student body non?" Veronique asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Veronique." Odette glared over at the mischievous girl, making her roll her emerald eyes.

"You must forgive me 'Ermione." Veronique sighed as she opened the door to the dining hall for the war hero. "My sense of 'umor ees lost on most people. I meant nozing by eet."

"It's fine." Hermione waved it off, but an uneasy feeling still sat in the pit of her stomach as she walked to her table where her friends were waiting for her.

" _ **What are you up to Veronique?"**_ Gabrielle asked accusingly the second Hermione was far enough away.

Veronique smiled wickedly at the younger Delacour. " _ **I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm not up to anything."**_

/

As Hermione made her way to the Gryffindor table she heard a couple wolf whistles, making her roll her eyes. "I wonder how long this is going to go on for." She sighed to herself as she took her seat while Ron sent a threatening look in the direction of anyone who dared to make a pass or lewd comment toward his best friend.

Ginny smiled when Hermione sat down next to her. "There you are! Where have you been?"

"I think I have a good idea." Harry grinned into his pumpkin juice, earning him a scowl from the golden girl.

"With Fleur eh?" Ginny wiggled her eyebrows suggestively at the prefect.

"Did you guys talk things out?" Ron smiled hopefully over at the brunette only to receive a despondent look.

"No, I got kicked out before we could really talk." Hermione sighed as she started pushing the food around on her plate.

"Madam Pomfrey is a bloody nightmare." Ron grumbled before he bit into his chicken. "By the way, I'm sorry for saying those things about Fleur." He spoke around his food. "I wouldn't have tried to have a go at her if I knew."

Hermione smiled at her friend, feeling too lucky to have them in that moment to even reprimand him for speaking with his mouth full. "It's fine Ron. I know you wouldn't have."

Ron smiled back and the group laughed when some of his food fell out of his over-stuffed mouth. "You're really not going to reprimand him Mione?" Ginny grinned over at the brunette.

"No, Ronald gets a pass today."

"So, have you figured things out?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow.

Hermione shrugged. "Somewhat, but I have no chance of talking to her until tomorrow."

"Well . . . you could always use the cloak." Harry smiled mischievously at his friend.

Hermione chewed on her lower lip for a moment, deep in thought. "I might take you up on that, but I think it might be better for me to mull things over for a bit first."

"If you say so." Harry smirked into his pumpkin juice that spilled all over him when Hermione elbowed him in the ribs, making him burst into another fit of laughter.

/

Hermione wrestled with herself all dinner and even excused herself early to try to go to bed to sleep on things, but she found herself tossing and turning in her sheets. She couldn't get Fleur out of her head; she was terrified of saying those three words she had never uttered to anyone except her friends and family. This was definitely uncharted territory and she had no idea how to approach the subject.

She slammed her eyes shut for the millionth time that night, but every time she closed her eyelids all she saw were visions of blonde hair, pink lips, and glowing neon eyes. Her heart was fluttering in her chest, her adrenaline pumping through her veins at just the thought of the champion and no matter how hard she tried she couldn't get Fleur out of her head.

"Oh, fuck it all." Hermione grumbled as she sat up in bed, gathered what Gryffindor courage she had left in her from the day, and walked swiftly down the stairs to see her friends sitting on the couch.

When she approached the group Harry already had his hand up, holding the cloak in the air, ready for her to take.

"Thanks." She said with a smile and kissed her friend's forehead when he leaned back on the couch to look up at her with an even bigger grin before she threw it on.

"Go get her Mione!" Ginny yelled after the now invisible prefect leaving out of the portrait.

"Alright, pay up." Harry smirked as he held out his hand to Ginny and Ron.

Ron let out a groan as he threw a couple galleons into his hand. "How did you bloody know!?"

Harry shrugged. "She's not as daft as you all think."

Ginny sighed as she gave Harry her own galleons. "I really need to stop gambling."

/

Hermione felt her nerves hitting her once more as she ascended the steps to the infirmary, barely avoiding some of her prefect peers along the way. When she arrived at her destination she stood at the door, her hands clenched into tight fists and shaking. ' _Come on Granger. You can do this. She already did the hard part, you just have to spit it out.'_

Hermione let out a shaky breath before she quietly opened the door, slipped into the hospital wing, and made her way to Fleur's bed where she found the veela sitting there quietly drawing in her new sketch pad with her brow furrowed. ' _Why does she have to be so bloody cute?'_ Hermione sighed to herself as she watched Fleur for a moment longer, inwardly swooning when some blonde strands of hair swept in front of bright blue orbs.

She felt her heart start picking up in pace as she decided to finally reveal herself and slowly pulled the cloak from off of her head. When Fleur still didn't notice her presence she took a step closer to the end of her bed. "I see you couldn't sleep either."

Fleur jumped and dropped her quill at the intrusion and looked up to see Hermione Granger clad in her red Gryffindor pajama shorts and white tee shirt looking completely disheveled at the end of her bed. "Ermione? 'Ow did you-"

"Harry let me borrow his cloak." Hermione smiled as she held up the invisible garment.

"I see." Fleur smiled lightly as Hermione picked up her quill from the ground and handed it to her. "What brings you to my desolate chamber at zis time of night?"

"I . . ." Hermione paused and looked off to the side and chewed on her lower lip.

"Ees somezing wrong?" Fleur frowned at Hermione's behavior and felt her heart sink into her stomach at the thought Hermione might be upset with her for what she said.

"Did you mean it?"

Fleur felt her blood run cold and her heart rate pick up tenfold at the question. "Mean what?"

Hermione turned her attention back to the frazzled blonde, looking just as nervous as she felt. "You know what." She spoke softly.

Fleur looked down and clenched the sheets tightly in her hands; the last person she fell in love with shattered her heart into a million pieces, but Hermione was different and she had already said the words. There was no point in going back now. "When I was down at ze bottom of zat lake . . ." Fleur started shakily. "I zought about a lot of zings. My friends, my family, dreams, regrets, but ze zing I zought about ze most . . ." Fleur looked back up and icy blue met shining amber. "Was you."

"Fleur . . ."

"All I could zink about was all ze zings we did, all ze zings we would never get to do, and all ze zings I never got to say so . . ." Fleur let out an uneasy sigh as she closed her eyes, preparing herself for her confession and inevitable rejection, but before she could open her bright orbs she felt a weight settle on her lap and a soft pair of lips press against her own.

Fleur caved in immediately to the kiss, feeling as if her lungs were being filled with oxygen she had been deprived of for far too long. The kiss wasn't crushing and desperate like the one at the lake, it was gentle and felt almost reassuring like Hermione was trying to tell her she didn't need to feel afraid and it worked. The second those ruby lips pressed against her own she felt all of her anxiety, all of her fear immediately vanish into the air and all that was left was Hermione who was now pulling away, much to her dismay.

Hermione let out a soft sigh and rested her forehead against Fleurs, keeping her eyes closed for a moment as she relished in the feeling of Fleur's warm flesh beneath her own before she slowly opened her bright gold eyes. She smiled when she saw neon blue looking back at her dreamily and felt her heart flutter at the sight.

"I love you too." Hermione spoke quietly and arctic blue eyes widened ever so slightly before Hermione brought her mouth back to those plump pink lips that always called out to her.

Fleur never thought she could feel so elated by hearing four simple words; this was so much better than the first time that tainted her and the way Hermione's lips were pressing against her own was making her dizzy. All she could do was grip Hermione hips and pull the prefect closer as the kiss intensified while Hermione buried her hands in her long soft blonde strands and sucked the champion's lower lip into her mouth, setting Fleur's body on fire before she pulled away.

"I'm so sorry." Hermione spoke breathlessly, leaning in to steal another deep kiss as if Fleur was a magnet, but pulled away a second later. "I should have never gone to the dance with anyone else."

"Non, I should 'ave asked you." Fleur replied just as breathlessly before she leaned up and kissed Hermione a little longer than the Gryffindor kissed her before she forced herself to pull away. "And I should never 'ave yelled at you. I was jealous."

"So, you were jealous." Hermione grinned down at the now scowling champion.

"Oui." Fleur nodded her head, gripping Hermione's hips a little tighter and pulling her closer to her with a growl, making the prodigy gasp. "You're mine 'Ermione Granger."

"Am I now?" Hermione asked, her breathing becoming ragged as Fleur's hands found their way under the hem of her shirt so her thumbs could stroke the warm skin next to her hip bones.

"Oui." Fleur nodded her head as she looked up at Hermione with glowing eyes. "Zat ees eef you'll 'ave me."

"Are you asking me-"

Fleur chewed on her lower lip before she nodded her head again while Hermione held her breath. "I was foolish when I said I did not want to be your girlfriend . . . I was not zinking. I was so upset zat I couldn't zink straight and said zings I did not mean. I want you to be mine and I don't want to ever lose you . . ." Fleur gripped Hermione's hips a little tighter as she let out a shaky breath. "Will you be my girlfriend?"

Hermione's grin grew if that was possible and simply nodded her head. She went to dive in to kiss the champion again but Fleur pulled back a bit, leaving the Gryffindor very confused.

"I want to give you your gift." Fleur smiled nervously at Hermione who sat back a bit while she undid the clasp of the necklace hanging around her neck. "I got you zis for Christmas, but I didn't zink you would want eet after I treated you so 'orribly so I wore eet instead to keep you wiz me." Fleur blushed as she held out the necklace.

"Oh Fleur . . ." Hermione sighed as she gently took the jewelry from the veela's hand. "I kept noticing you wearing it . . . I had no idea . . ."

"Do you like eet?" Fleur asked quietly; it was obvious she was nervous about the present and that alone made Hermione smile.

"I love it Fleur. It's perfect." Fleur smiled lightly to Hermione's response and sat there uncharacteristically quiet. "Will you put it on for me?"

Fleur nodded her head and Hermione turned around, sweeping her brown and blonde locks off to the side to expose her slender neck, making the French witch's heart flutter in her chest as she carefully brought her hands up to either side of Hermione and clasped the chain together.

When Hermione turned back around she was absolutely beaming. "How does it look on me?"

Fleur felt her heart melt at the sight and a dopey smile overcame her face. "Eet looks much better on you zan me."

"You're such a liar. Everything looks better on you." Hermione laughed and went to playfully push Fleur's shoulder, but the veela's reflexes were quick and she snatched Hermione's wrist mid-air gently in her hand.

The smile fell from both of their faces as Fleur pulled Hermione in until she was close enough for her to release her wrist and place her hand on the back of the war hero's neck. Glowing neon blue stared through bright amber as their lips steadily grew closer and closer. "I love you 'Ermione Granger."

Hearing those words again sent Hermione's heart into a frenzy and when those soft pink lips pressed against her own she thought her heart might just explode in her chest, but death by Fleur Delacour's kiss would be the sweetest way for her go. "I was so scared. . ." Hermione spoke softly, pulling away slightly from the sweet caress of Fleur's lips, making the veela look at her with a furrowed brow.

"Scared?"

"When I got out of the lake and didn't see you . . ." Hermione chewed on her lower lip as she fiddled with the end of Fleur's hair. "No one knew where you were and when we figured out what happened . . . I just . . ." Hermione looked off to the side and had to pause to swallow the lump in her throat, trying to fight back tears as she continued. "I couldn't leave you there." Broken amber turned back to lock with Fleur's sad gaze; she had never meant to make Hermione so distressed. "And then when I got you out . . . you were so cold and you weren't moving. You weren't breathing . . ." Hermione spoke sadly as she placed her hand on Fleur's chest to feel the steady rise and fall of it to remind herself Fleur was in fact breathing now. "The first time I tried to revive you it didn't work . . . And I really thought I had lost you . . . I don't know what I would have-"

Fleur leaned forward and pressed her lips against Hermione's once more to silence her fears and stop her from thinking about the what if's. "But you did save me." Fleur smiled softly as she pulled away. "And I am not going anywhere. I am a lot 'arder to kill zan you zink." Fleur smirked and Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Well don't bloody scare me like that again." Hermione glared down at the blonde.

Fleur grinned up at the prefect scolding her. "You 'ave my word."

"Good." Hermione smiled back and leaned in to give Fleur a lingering kiss that made her tingle from her head to her toes. "I should probably go . . ." Hermione sighed as she pulled away and saw the time.

"Stay." Fleur pleaded, gripping Hermione's hand gently in her own. "I always sleep better wiz you in my arms and zis 'orrible potion ees making my wounds eetch, making eet impossible to sleep."

Hermione eyed the veela beneath her, but when Fleur gave her the puppy dog eyes all bets were off. "Fine, but only because I love you." Hermione sighed, making Fleur light up. "Now scoot over."

Fleur quickly complied, lifting the covers for her girlfriend to wiggle in, and immediately pulled the brunette to her once she was completely situated and buried her nose in her brown locks, inhaling the scent of lavender.

"Better?" Hermione said with a smile and Fleur nodded her head, closing her eyes and relaxing almost immediately.

/

They laid in bed for almost an hour and Hermione had already drifted off into a deep sleep when fidgeting behind her woke her from her pleasant slumber.

"Fleur?" Hermione asked groggily, turning around to face to the restless blonde. "What's wrong?"

"I am sorry 'Ermione. I did not mean to wake you." Fleur spoke sheepishly. "Eet just eetches so bad and I'm not allowed to scratch ze wound, but all I can zink about ees scratching eet." Fleur whined.

"Come here." Hermione yawned as she held up her arm for Fleur to lay her head on her chest.

"I don't want to incon-"

"Just come here." Hermione smiled sleepily at the injured champion who reluctantly complied and rested her head on the Gryffindor's chest.

Hermione dropped her arm and slowly ran her fingers through the blonde's hair in a soothing manner. "My mum used to do this for me when I couldn't sleep and it even worked when I had chicken pox."

Fleur crinkled her nose at the mention of chicken pox. "What ees zat?"

"It's something muggles get when they're little." Hermione smiled as she rested her cheek on the top of Fleur's head. "You get red spots everywhere and they itch like crazy."

"Zat sounds 'orrible."

Hermione laughed and nodded her head. "It is."

They both laid there in comfortable silence as Hermione continued her ministrations and Fleur listened to the slow, steady beating of the prefect's heart, but she still was having a little trouble sleeping when she heard Hermione's soft musical voice ring out in song.

Stars shining bright above you  
Night breezes seem to whisper "I love you"  
Birds singing in the sycamore trees  
Dream a little dream of me

Fleur laid there, completely content as she listened to Hermione's surprisingly nice voice and the sweet melody that filled the air that made her eyelids start to grow heavy.

Say nighty-night and kiss me  
Just hold me tight and tell me you'll miss me  
While I'm alone and blue as can be  
Dream a little dream of me

She wanted to comment on how nice Hermione's voice was, but was far too afraid that it might make the Gryffindor stop so she remained silent as she closed her eyes.

Stars fading but I linger on dear  
Still craving your kiss  
I'm longing to linger till dawn dear  
Just saying this

She was now having the opposite problem she had before and was fighting to stay awake to listen to Hermione, but her breathing began to deepen and she felt the pull of sleep finally start to overtake her from the combination of the warmth beneath her, Hermione's fingers running through her hair, and the song lulling her to sleep.

Sweet dreams till sunbeams find you  
Sweet dreams that leave all worries behind you  
But in your dreams whatever they be  
Dream a little dream of me

By the time Hermione finished the song Fleur was snoring softly on her shoulder, making the war hero smile down at the exhausted veela before she kissed her girlfriend on the forehead and settled further down into the bed to get more comfortable. "Works every time." Hermione mumbled to herself before she fell back into a deep slumber.


	22. Waves

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The musical inspiration for the beginning of this chapter is Arsonist's Lullaby by Hozier, during the middle part Waves (Acoustic) by Dean Lewis, and then the song Water Fountain by Alec Benjamin helped with the last part even though it doesn't have much to do with what is happening during that part lol

When Hermione woke up she was greeted with the early morning light and a warm body pressed against her own keeping the chill of the late winter breeze away. She looked down and felt her heart swell in her chest when she saw strands of golden hair sprawled across Fleur's peaceful face and a delicate hand gripping her shirt. She lifted her hand to gently move the bangs from the slumbering champion's face and continued to run her fingers through the soft tresses while the veela started to stir and furrowed her brow at the light now shining on her face.

A smile slipped onto the Gryffindor's face and a giggle erupted from her lips when Fleur responded to the light by burrowing her nose and face into her neck with a grumble. "Fleur." Hermione laughed as the strands of blonde hair feathered over her skin. "That tickles."

Fleur smiled into Hermione's neck at the melodious sounds of her laughter filling the room. "Shh." She chastised the golden girl jokingly, but the air leaving her lips against Hermione's neck made the prodigy laugh harder. "I am trying to sleep Mademoiselle Granger."

Hermione grinned in response to being scolded for once. "If you're trying to sleep, then why are you tickling me?"

Fleur scoffed against the warm skin beneath her. "I am not trying to tickle you. Eef I was trying to tickle you I would do zis." She quickly moved her hand from Hermione's chest and started tickling the prefect's ribs, making Hermione squirm and laugh.

"St-stop!" Hermione managed to get out between laughs as she tried to wiggle away. She had almost made it to the edge of the bed when Fleur grabbed her, pulled her flush against her body, and threw her leg over her waist.

Fleur finally lifted her head and opened her bright blue eyes to look down at shining amber. "You are not allowed to leave. Eet ees far too cold and you . . ." Fleur burrowed her nose back into Hermione's neck and let out a content sigh. "Are far too warm."

"Is that so?" Hermione raised an eyebrow and Fleur nodded her head in response before she lightly inhaled Hermione's scent and started to slowly kiss the brunette's neck. "F-Fleur." Hermione blushed as she bit her lower lip and shifted her gaze to the side to make sure no one else was in the infirmary. "What do you think you're um . . ." The brilliant witch found it difficult to think with those soft pink lips dancing on her skin and her breath hitched when the veela lightly scraped her teeth against the delicate flesh. "D-doing? We could get caught."

"I can't 'elp eet 'Ermione." Fleur mumbled against the prefect's skin as she kissed further down her neck and inhaled again when she reached the nape. "I was smelling your pheromones all night . . ." Fleur spoke as her legs tangled with Hermione's and almost shuddered at how good it felt to have even a bit of her girlfriend's skin rub against her own. "And eets driving me insane."

"You can smell my pheromones?" Hermione asked somewhat mortified, but curious at the same time.

Fleur nodded her head, dragging her lips further down Hermione's skin, feeling drunk off the feeling of being so close to the prefect; something she was denied for too long. "Oui."

Hermione felt her cheeks heat up when Fleur's hand went under her shirt and started to rub the skin of her tight stomach in slow circles while the veela sucked on the flesh of her neck. "How?"

"I am a veela." Fleur smiled as her lips trailed down to under Hermione's chin and throat, making the prefect tilt her head back and grip the sheets tightly. "I can smell eet on your skin . . ." She spoke softly as she ran her hand slowly to Hermione's hip, gripping it tightly as she kissed back to the nape of her neck. "And I can taste eet een your sweat." The champion emphasized her point by slowly running her tongue up the side of Hermione's neck, making the Gryffindor shudder.

"A-and what do I-"

"Lavender." Fleur smirked, answering Hermione's question before it could completely come out of her mouth, and pulling away to hover over the bookworm. "You smell like lavender." She ran her free hand through Hermione's wavy brown locks while the thumb on her other rubbed circles on Hermione's hip. "And you taste like . . ." Her arctic eyes started glowing as they zeroed in on candy red lips struggling to suck in air as she moved in closer.

"Like what?" Hermione asked breathlessly with clouded over eyes.

Fleur licked her lips, leaning in closer as her eyelids fluttered closed. "Cherries." She breathed out before she captured Hermione's lips in her own.

Hermione felt her body heat up and shivers ran up and down her spine as those soft clouds Fleur called lips slowly and sensually claimed her own while she moved to straddle Hermione's waist. Her senses were going wild with Fleur on her lap and running her tongue across her lower lip while Fleur's skilled digits ran up her skin under her shirt, making the muscles in her stomach twitch in anticipation for what was to come.

"Fleur." Hermione sighed against pink lips as she gripped the sheets a little tighter, trying to contain the fire that was growing in her chest.

"Do you 'ave any idea what you do to me 'Ermione Granger?" Fleur asked as she pulled away, her eyes glowing brightly as she moved her hand out from under Hermione's shirt to grab the prefects hands and guide them up her thighs to her hips.

Hermione felt her mouth go dry at Fleur's actions and squeezed the veela's hips when she felt them roll against her own. "I haven't the foggiest." She replied dumbly, completely entranced by the girl above her.

Fleur let out a sigh, releasing the prefects hands so they could roam as they pleased. "Sometimes . . ." She spoke slowly as she leaned forward again, locking eyes with foggy gold that seemed to be hypnotized by her every movement. "I want you so bad . . ." She kissed Hermione once slowly, letting her lips linger as she sucked in Hermione's lower lip and pulled away just a little. "Eet 'urts."

Hermione laid there for a moment in awe, her heart pounding wildly in her chest as she gazed at the goddess above her biting on her lower lip and looking down at her as if she was something delicious that she wanted to devour. They stayed like that for a couple seconds, just looking at each other, and then Hermione sat up and Fleur shot forward as if they were magnets, and crashed their lips against each others in a needy kiss.

It felt like electricity was running rampant through Hermione's veins as Fleur's hips moved against hers more vigorously, building a fire in the pit of her stomach, as her right hand moved from gripping the veela's hip bone to running up her stomach under her shirt past her bandages to her ribs and then finally it reached its destination when Hermione felt the lace of Fleur's bra.

The prefect hesitated for a moment, but one grind from Fleur's hips made her head go foggy and all doubt was erased as she grabbed Fleur's perfect breast, eliciting a moan from the blonde that sent shockwaves through Hermione's entire system.

Hermione kissed her way to Fleur's flawless jawline, nipping on the skin as she went to slip her hand under the champion's bra, but two soft hands swiftly pushed her shoulders so she was laying on her back once more. A look of confusion filled golden eyes, but confusion was replaced with lust as Fleur grabbed the bottom of her shirt and pulled it over her head at a tantalizingly slow pace.

Hermione just laid there drinking in every inch of skin that became exposed to her heated gaze. She watched as the curve of Fleur's waist came into view and noticed the white bandages she touched before wrapped around her perfect body. She admired the swell of her breasts hidden beneath black lace that came into view as the French witch's shirt inched up her body and then her gaze landed on the charming freckle located just beneath her collar bone that caught her attention the first time she had seen the blonde in her underwear.

Finally, Fleur discarded her shirt off to the side while Hermione laid there in awe of the girl above her; sure she had seen Fleur in her underwear, but the intentions were always innocent or murky or started out that way, but this time Fleur's intentions were clear and she could feel the lust rolling off of the veela in waves. Fleur wanted her and Hermione would be lying if she said she didn't want to take the champion over and over again herself.

"Bloody Hell." Hermione mumbled when she finally composed herself and grabbed Fleur's hips as she sat up again and brought her lips to just below Fleur's ribs. She noticed right away the veela's skin was hot to the touch as Fleur shuddered at the feeling of the prefects lips on her bare skin. "You really are bloody perfect."

A trail of goosebumps followed behind the Gryffindor's soft lips gingerly kissing up the foreigners ribs while her left hand slid up Fleur's side slowly catching up to her mouth on the opposite side. When she came to a bandage she frowned at the white material before placing a careful kiss over the wound making Fleur smile lightly at the prodigy.

"Are you kissing eet better?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

Hermione looked up at the champion and nodded her head with a grin. "Mhmm." She kissed another bandage and went to kiss up the center of Fleur's body but a delicate finger was placed under her chin, pushing it up to look into arctic blue eyes.

"I 'ave anozer wound zat needs 'ealing." Fleur spoke softly as she licked her lips and her eyes glowed a little brighter.

"Oh?" Hermione replied just as softly as she gripped Fleur's right hip a little tighter and pulled the champion a little closer. "Where is it?" Hermione's thumb dipped below the waistband of the blonde's shorts and the veela almost lost it in that moment. She never thought in her wildest fantasies that Hermione Granger would be the one making her way into her pants, even if it was just the tip of her thumb. She was tempted to guide the prefect's hand all the way into her shorts where she needed her the most, but thought better of it and pointed at her lips instead.

Hermione smirked at the blonde's request and leaned further up to capture those soft lips in another heated kiss. She bit down on Fleur's plump lower lip as she slid her hand the rest of the way up to Fleur's bra and finally pushed underneath to massage the soft flesh of Fleur's breast. Hermione had of course touched her own breasts, but feeling Fleur's was something else entirely; it was exhilarating, it set her teeth on edge, and set her skin ablaze. She wanted more of the soft flesh, wanted to feel every inch of the goddess slipping her tongue into her mouth.

Fleur moaned into the prodigy's mouth as she tangled her hands in wavy sandy blonde tresses and slowly pushed the Gryffindor until she was laying flat on her back while she hovered over her. She had tried to behave herself to an extent, but Hermione was making the task impossible with her wandering hands and magical lips trailing down to her neck. "'Ermione . . ." Fleur breathed out as she pushed the prefect's shirt up so she could feel the skin of her stomach pressed against the bookworm's.

Hermione immediately arched into the veela's touch and ran her thumb across her nipple, making Fleur moan and close her eyes as Hermione scraped her teeth across her neck. Hermione Granger was quite the instigator this time around and proceeded to push her hips up against Fleur's, encouraging the champion to continue her ministrations from before as she pressed her eager lips against her girlfriends.

Fleur was all too happy to oblige as she slipped her hand to the small of Hermione's back and pushed her way between her legs. She made sure to go slower this time as she pulsed her hips into the Gryffindor beneath her, making a small gasp slip past cherry lips and right into her mouth. She wanted to do a lot more than make Hermione gasp; she wanted to hear her moan and cry out her name over and over until she begged her to stop.

The veela in her was egging her on to take what was rightfully hers, to make sure she was the first and only person to ever touch Hermione Granger. Hermione was pure and untainted and she would be the one to change that. That thought alone made her veela purr in approval as she slid her hand down into the back of Hermione's shorts and into her underwear to grab the soft firm flesh of the golden girl's butt to pull her closer.

She was so close, she had Hermione right where she wanted her; she was so caught up in the brunette that she didn't hear the door open, but Hermione Granger was always careful and the second she heard a creak she jumped off the bed, sending Fleur tumbling down to the ground with a yelp on the opposite side while the prefect threw on the invisibility cloak.

"Merde." Fleur groaned from the cold ground, completely confused as to what happened.

"Fleur Isabelle Delacour!" Came a voice that put ice in the champions veins.

" _ **M-Mother?"**_ Fleur spoke with wide eyes, turning to see the towering figure of Apolline Delacour standing over her with a sheepish looking Gabrielle and Odette close behind. " _ **What are you doing here?"**_ She asked nervously, shifting her eyes back to the bed to see if Hermione was still there, but the prefect seemed to have vanished.

" _ **What do you think I'm doing here?"**_ Apolline growled as Fleur scrambled to her feet and dropped a paper on the veela's bed.

Fleur picked up the paper and paled when she saw Hermione and herself locking lips on the dock on the front page of the Daily Prophet with the title 'Love and Betrayal in the Triwizard Tournament' in big bold letters. " _ **That damn Rita Skeeter."**_ Fleur grumbled as she threw the paper back down to see her mother still watching her with hardened features.

" _ **First I receive a letter about you starting a fight and now THIS!?"**_ Apolline bellowed, making all the veela in the room flinch at their alpha's tone. " _ **I sent you here to win a competition and bring honor to the Delacour clan, but instead you embarrass me by engaging in petty fights and making headlines with your lewd behavior that you have now dragged Hermione Granger into!"**_

" _ **It's not-"**_ Fleur tried to defend herself, but the Delacour matriarch was having none of it.

" _ **I thought sending your sister here with you would keep you in line, but you still defy me at every turn."**_

" _ **I'm the older sister."**_ Fleur crossed her arms. _ **"I don't need Gabrielle looking after me!"**_

" _ **Obviously not! You're running around Hogwarts like the town tart."**_ Apolline shook her head, her distaste for her daughter's actions written all over her face.

Fleur gritted her teeth at the way her mother was speaking to her and felt her temper flare. " _ **It's not like that with Hermione."**_

Apolline rolled her eyes in response. " _ **I'm sure."**_

" _ **It's true!"**_ Fleur clenched her fists tightly, glaring defiantly at the older blonde. " _ **I'm in love with her!"**_

A laugh fell past the matriarch's lips, bristling the already tense champion. " _ **You're only seventeen. You have no idea what you're talking about."**_

" _ **I may be seventeen, but at least I'm not some cold-"**_

" _ **I'm going to stop you there."**_ Apolline spoke firmly with narrowed eyes. " _ **You're lucky you're in a binding contract with this competition, because if it was up to me you would be taken home immediately and would finish your last couple months of being a student being home schooled."**_

" _ **Lucky me."**_ Fleur replied sarcastically with a roll of her eyes, making her mother's temper flare even more.

" _ **And what is this?"**_ Apolline pushed past Fleur when her new sketch pad and quill caught her eye. She grabbed the pad and eyed it with disgust, but Fleur was quick to snatch it out of her hands and hold it to her chest protectively with her head downcast. " _ **How many times do I have to tell you that you need to focus on your studies and the clan instead of these silly drawings!? When will you grow up!?"**_

"Oi!" Hermione finally ripped the invisibility cloak off herself from behind the veela, making the group whirl around and look at her with wide eyes. Gabrielle and Odette seemed to shake their heads at the Gryffindor, trying to tell her to stay out of it, but she had stood and listened to Fleur's mom berate her for too long. She tried to stay out of the family affair, really she did, but when she heard how she belittled Fleur's talent Hermione couldn't stop herself anymore.

Apolline stood there, clearly tense as she turned her heated stare to Hermione who squared her shoulders, meeting the matriarch's scorching gaze with her own. It was really a sight to see; two great forces colliding and standing their ground in silence while Fleur, Odette, and Gabrielle were left to spectate. "I know you're Fleur's mother, but there's no need for you to yell at her like that."

Apolline turned to her daughter with a raised eyebrow, making Fleur scowl. " _ **So not only does Hermione Granger save you during YOUR task, but now she is fighting your battles?"**_

" _ **I mean no disrespect and I know Fleur is perfectly capable of fighting her own battles, but you're completely wrong in all of this."**_

Apolline's eyebrows shot up her forehead and turned her attention back to Hermione when the golden girl spoke in perfect French and told her she was wrong; no one told Apolline Delacour she was wrong. " _ **Excuse me?"**_

" _ **I know this is none of my business, but Fleur only got in a fight, because of me. I had been drugged with a love potion and she was helping me and the only reason she needed saving in the tournament is, because Harry would have died if she hadn't gone back for him. Your daughter has done nothing but bring honor to your name while she has been here."**_

Fleur felt her cheeks heat up at Hermione's open praising of her actions while Apolline crossed her arms the same way her daughter did before; it would seem the apple didn't fall too far from the tree. " _ **So you lost your first place position to save a competitor?"**_ She scowled at her daughter avoiding her gaze with a matching frown.

" _ **Yes, she did."**_ Hermione spoke up before Fleur could. " _ **I would think you would be proud of her for saving Harry Potter, they boy who freed the world from Voldemort and furthermore you should be thrilled by Fleur's drawings. She's talented and it would be a shame if her gift went to waste."**_

" _ **Of course I'm glad Harry Potter was spared."**_ Apolline grumbled. " _ **But I'm afraid you don't really know my daughter. It pains me to say this, but I think it would be best if you stayed away Miss Granger."**_

Fleur felt her blood boil and her heart sink simultaneously at her elder's words, but Hermione refused to back down. " _ **I think you're the one who doesn't know Fleur Mrs. Delacour and I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions."**_

" _ **Stubborn child."**_ Apolline groaned while Fleur threw on her shirt and swept past her mother with her sketch pad and quill under her arm. " _ **Where do you think you're going!?"**_

" _ **Away from here."**_ Fleur mumbled as she grabbed Hermione's hand and walked by Madam Pomfrey coming to make her morning rounds.

"You need to be resting missy!" The nurse yelled, but Fleur waved off the older woman as she exited the infirmary with Hermione, Odette, and Gabrielle close behind.

"I can't believe you did zat . . ." Odette spoke with wide eyes while Gabrielle stayed silent, still dumbstruck by what she witnessed.

"I wasn't too harsh or out of line was I?" Hermione asked, looking from Gabrielle and Odette then to Fleur. "I'm sorry Fleur, I didn't mean to make things worse . . . I just couldn't . . ."

Fleur paused in her steps with her lips in a straight line, making Hermione and the rest of the group halt too. No words were said when she let go of the brunette's hand, handed Odette her sketch pad, and grabbed the Gryffindor's face with both hands to pull her in for a kiss. When she pulled away Hermione was sporting a blush and wide amber eyes. "Merci 'Ermione. You didn't 'ave to do what you did, but you did eet anyways and I love you even more for eet. Je suis desolee for making you deal wiz 'er. You really don't need to worry what she zinks. She ees just bitter and cold."

"I know, but it's just . . ." Hermione's blush deepened as she glanced over to Odette and Gabrielle pretending to mind their own business, but it was obvious they were listening to the conversation.

Fleur frowned as she moved a stray strand of Hermione's brown hair behind her ear. "What ees eet?"

"I would hate for your mom to not want me around her daughter." Hermione sighed and a smile slid across Fleur's face matched discreetly by Odette and Gabrielle.

"Oh 'Ermione . . ."

"Wait!" Fleur was about to lean in to kiss her girlfriend again, but paused and tried to hide her irritation when Odette interrupted them. "Does zis mean you two are togezer now?" The red-head grinned as she bounced over to the new couple.

Fleur let out a sigh and closed her eyes, mentally preparing for her friend's reaction when Hermione nodded her head, but nothing could prepare her for the bone crushing hug Odette pulled her and Hermione into.

"Odette." Gabrielle laughed when Fleur and Hermione's faces started to turn purple. "You're going to kill zem if you don't let zem go."

"Sorry." Odette blushed and released the couple gasping for air.

"Thanks for the enthusiasm though." Hermione smiled as Fleur rubbed her sore ribs, drawing the prefect's attention to her. "Fleur, you really should be under the care of Madam Pomfrey right now."

"I'm fine." Fleur waved off the concerned bookworm. "Just a little sore. Eet ees nozing to worry about." Hermione eyed the blonde suspiciously who proceeded to smile and roll her eyes as she grabbed the prodigy's arm to drag her down the steps. "Eef eet starts to 'urt I will go back, I promise."

"You better." Hermione grumbled.

The group suddenly came to a halt when they came upon a crowd of students blocking their path making a commotion. Hermione stood on her tiptoes to see what all the fuss was about and a frown crossed her face when she saw Viktor Krum standing over Malfoy in a threatening manner.

"Throw them avay." Viktor spoke in a voice that was calm, but there was an undertone of a threat in it if Malfoy didn't do what was asked of him.

"Why?" Malfoy scoffed, trying to keep a cool demeanor in front of his friends.

The seeker growled and took a step forward, making the Slytherin take a step back until his back met the wall. "Don't make me tell you tvice."

"Viktor!" Hermione finally pushed through the crowd and grabbed the Bulgarian's arm, earning her a scowl from her veela lover as she tried to pull him back a bit. "What is going on?"

A smirk overcame Malfoy's features while Pansy Parkinson stepped forward with a calendar hiding her face as she let out a low whistle of appreciation. "Bloody Hell . . ." She said as she dropped the calendar so she could shamelessly check out the Gryffindor prefect standing there with her arms crossed. "Looking good Granger. Put me down for ten Malfoy."

Hermione furrowed her brow in confusion while Fleur took a protective step closer to her girlfriend. "Ten of what? Will someone tell me what the hell is going on?"

"They . . ." Viktor cleared his throat and blushed as he looked away from the golden girl. "They made-"

"They made bloody calendars!?" Ginny yelled as she held a calendar in her own hand and on the month of February there was Hermione and Fleur locking lips on the dock.

"So this is why you turned me down Granger?" Pansy asked with a raised eyebrow and a smug smile. "You prefer blondes?"

Fleur felt her temper flare and took a threatening step towards the Slytherin, but Hermione was quick to grab her arm before she took things too far. "Don't Fleur. " She sighed. "She's not worth it."

Pansy held her hand to her chest in mock pain at Hermione's comment. "You wound me Granger."

"Don't tempt me Parkinson." Hermione snapped back.

"Sounds like a good time." The raven-haired girl threw a wink in Hermione's direction and Fleur snapped. The veela went to reach for her wand to teach the insufferable Slytherin girl a lesson, but Ginny saw the distress on her friend's face and shoved the cocky student before Fleur could get to her.

"Bugger off Pansy. These calendars are almost as tacky as you lot so do us all a favor and get rid of them before I get rid of you."

"You better watch yourself Weasley." Pansy growled as she went for her wand, but the champions and company were much faster. Before any Slytherin could even touch their wand there were six wands in their faces.

"Do eet." Fleur spoke through gritted teeth, her eyes now glowing dangerously as she looked from Malfoy to Pansy to their goons. "I want an excuse to 'ex you senseless."

"What is the meaning of this!?" Sirius frowned as he broke up the group of students at a stand-off.

"Malfoy and company made a lewd calendar of Mione and Fleur." Ginny grumbled as she put her wand down and handed the calendar to Harry's uncle.

"They did what!?" Sirius bellowed as he turned on the group of Slytherins. "Malfoy, Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle. My office. Now!" He left no room for any arguing as the group sent one last sneer in Hermione and company's direction before they followed the Dark Art's professor to his office.

"The bloody nerve of them." Ginny grumbled before sticking her tongue out at Pansy childishly as she passed her by, making the Slytherin scowl in response. "Just wait til Harry and Ron hear about this. They're going to give Malfoy a good thrashing."

"I will 'andle zose Slyzerins myself." Fleur growled as she watched the group disappear around the corner. "Epsecially zat girl and zat little pig."

"I am sorry Hermione." Viktor frowned. "I tried to take care of it before you had to. That boy has no respect." He went to take a step closer to the brunette, but Fleur threw a protective arm around the prodigy's shoulder, pulling her into her side with a sharp glare in the Bulgarian's direction that made his frown deepen.

"Fleur." Hermione shot her girlfriend a disapproving look, but Fleur just tightened her hold.

"I don't mean any harm." Viktor glared back at the other champion before turning his gaze back to the golden girl. "I know ve have not had a chance to talk since the dance, but I must tell you that I did not drug you Hermione. I vould never do something so horrible."

Fleur let out a huff, showing her disbelief and displeasure at him being so close to her Gryffindor making Hermione shoot her another disapproving look before turning her gaze back to the seeker and softening her gaze. "I know Viktor. I believe you. I'm sorry I haven't said something to you sooner."

Viktor let out a relieved sigh and Fleur bristled at Hermione's sincere tone with her competition. "You don't need to apologize to me Hermione. I am still trying to get to the bottom of vhat happened, but everything is still fuzzy."

"Yeah, me too."

"Well per'aps you two could get togezer and figure it out." Fleur grumbled before she stormed off down the steps. Odette and Gabrielle went to go after their alpha but Hermione halted them before they got too far.

"I can handle this." Hermione sighed at the two girls before giving Viktor an apologetic smile and going after the hotheaded blonde. "Fleur!" Hermione yelled when she saw the veela storming down the stairs with a scowl. Fleur tried to ignore her, but Hermione grabbed her arm when she caught up and pulled her into an abandoned classroom. "Are you seriously mad that I'm talking to Viktor?"

Fleur responded by crossing her arms and looking off to the side. "Excusez-moi eef the memory of 'is tongue down your zroat ees still fresh een my mind."

"Oh, Fleur." Hermione shook her head with a small smile before she took a step toward the ruffled veela. Fleur let out a huff and refused to look at the brunette, but a soft hand pressed against her cheek pulled her attention to her anyway. "You know, I never did thank you for saving me at the dance."

"Eet was nozing." Fleur grumbled, trying to hold on to her anger, but it was hard to do so with the Gryffindor looking at her with complete adoration.

"No, it wasn't." Hermione smiled as she ran her thumb over Fleur's high cheek bone. "You know, the entire dance, all I wanted to do was go running to you, but I was being too stupid and stubborn . . . kind of how you're being now." Fleur opened her mouth to snap back with a cutting response, but those sparkling amber eyes that were filled with laughter that was threatening to bubble out of ruby lips made her pause for a moment.

"I am not-" Fleur started, but was cut off by soft lips pressing against her own that made her forget about her anger at the Bulgarian and her ego telling her she needed to win a stupid fight.

Fleur's eyes were still closed when Hermione pulled away with a grin. "You are and I could make a ten-point presentation to prove it, but I'll settle with telling you I love you and kissing you instead."

"I zink I prefer zat." Fleur smiled back before she leaned in to capture the Gryffindor's lips in another kiss.

As the kiss deepened, she grabbed the bookworm by her hips and lifted her onto a desk nearby, making the Gryffindor laugh against her lips as she settled back in between her legs while Hermione wrapped her arms loosely around her neck. She tried to focus on the task at hand, but Fleur furrowed her brow as Hermione sucked in her lower lip and pulled away just a little. "You couldn't really make a ten-point presentation proving zat I'm being stupid, could you?"

Hermione let out another laugh at the adorable look on the blonde's face before she gave her another quick peck on the lips. "I absolutely could."

Fleur let out a sigh and rested her forehead against Hermione's shoulder. "I guess zis ees what I get for dating ze brightest witch of 'er age."


	23. Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This newest chapter was inspired by a lot of songs, but the two main ones were Spooky, but the Riverdale version (go ahead, judge me lol) and then Dreams by The Cranberries for the end of the chapter :D I am a sucker for The Cranberries :3

_And now I tell you openly_   
_You have my heart so don't hurt me_   
_You're what I couldn't find_   
_A totally amazing mind_   
_So understanding and so kind_   
_You're everything to me_

Hermione sat in the library late that night, trying to catch up on the homework she had failed to get ahead of while she was in the infirmary from the love potion and then Fleur. It was quiet and dark except for the one candle emitting a soft glow that left a warm glimmer on the table. It was times like these that made her thankful she was on good terms with Madam Pince, giving her free reign to be in the library even when she wasn't there so she could actually get some studying done without students clamoring for her attention.

She let out a yawn as she placed her book down on the table and leaned back in her chair while she stretched her arms above her head, making her shoulders let out a pleasurable crack. As she lowered her arms she took a moment to rub her tired eyes with her fists.

"I figured you would be 'ere." Came a velvety smooth voice accompanied by the soft click of heels.

Hermione removed her hands from her eyes, blinking to remove the spots from behind her eyelids to reveal the gorgeous silhouette of her girlfriend Fleur Delacour. "Fleur?" Hermione asked with a tilt of her head. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just een ze neighbor'ood and zought I might drop by." Fleur smirked as she grabbed a book off of a shelf, pretending to take interest in whatever was written inside while Hermione watched her skeptically.

"You were just roaming the castle past curfew and thought you'd drop by the library?" The brunette asked with a raised eyebrow.

Fleur shrugged as she put the book back in its proper place; she knew she would get a scolding from the bookworm if she, Merlin forbid, put it in the wrong spot. "Ees zat so 'ard to believe?"

"Yes."

Fleur just smiled a cat-like smile as she approached the table toward the other sole occupant of the library. "Well, per'aps I wanted to see my girlfriend."

"Well, per'aps your girlfriend 'as some studies to catch up on." Hermione grumbled, imitating the foreigner's accent as she picked her book back up, pointedly trying to ignore the blonde, but Fleur was not easily deterred.

The only response Fleur gave was an eyeroll that was unseen by the prefect as she finally reached her destination. She effortlessly lifted herself onto the table in front of the brunette that couldn't care less about her presence and that simply wouldn't do.

"Oi!" Hermione protested as Fleur grabbed the top of the book and pulled it out of her hands. "Don't . . ." Hermione started to scold her girlfriend for tossing the book to the side, but was left with her mouth hanging open when she saw Fleur Delacour sporting a short Hogwarts plaid skirt that was riding up her thighs less than a foot in front of her. Her amber eyes drifted up higher to see the Gryffindor gray sweater vest and a tie loosely hanging on her neck. Her gaze traveled up Fleur's slender neck to her perfect jawline to plump pink lips that were quirked up ever so slightly in the corner and then up to sapphire eyes lightly glowing neon blue behind horn rimmed glasses. "What . . . How did . . ." Hermione stuttered stupidly.

"I borrowed eet from you closet." Fleur smirked. "You like eet?"

"I um . . ." Hermione desperately tried to pull herself together, but the look Fleur was giving her and that skirt riding higher and higher up Fleur's perfectly toned thighs was making it hard to think. "You should be resting." She stated firmly, trying to keep her resolve while Fleur raised an eyebrow.

"Rest ees not what I need." Fleur nearly purred, making shivers run up and down Hermione's spine as she gently wrapped her fingers around the necklace hanging around the prefect's neck to pull her to her feet and bring her closer so Hermione was between those thighs she couldn't stop staring at.

"Fleur . . ." Hermione blushed as she licked her lips and looked off to the side towards the entrance of the library. "We could get caught."

"Zat's what makes eet so fun." Fleur smirked as she pulled on the silver necklace, bringing Hermione's attention and lips back to her.

Hermione's eyes fluttered closed upon feeling those velvety lips pressed against her own while Fleur's tongue gently probed at her lips, begging for entrance Hermione had no free will to deny at this point. Fleur Delacour was a woman who knew how to get what she wanted and Hermione Granger was putty in her hands that were currently running up the prefect's back just for those perfectly manicured nails to scrape back down.

Hermione shuddered slightly at the feeling while Fleur moved closed to the edge of the desk so the brunette was pressed against her, but the blonde leaned back ever so slightly from Hermione's wanting lips. "'Ermione . . ." Fleur spoke breathlessly less than an inch away from the heated prodigy. " _ **Do you want me?"**_

Fleur's sweet foreign language drifted into Hermione's ears, immediately taking her back to her first close encounter with the veela in the prefect's bathroom and her answer was the same, even if she had been too stubborn to admit it before. "Yes."

Fleur's full lips quirked up at one corner as she grabbed the prodigy's shaking hands and placed them on her thighs, sliding them up ever so slightly, making her skirt ride up a little more. "Fleur, you know I'm a . . . " Hermione gulped when she felt the blonde move into her touch.

"Oui, I know." Fleur sighed. "But eet 'urts." She whined softly, making goosebumps run up the brunette's arms. "Can't you see 'ow bad I need you?" Fleur asked as she bit her lower lip, looking up at the prodigy behind her glasses in a way that made Hermione sweat. "Can't you see 'ow I ache for your touch?" Fleur spoke softer while Hermione's hands started moving further up under her skirt of their own accord.

"I just-" Hermione started to talk, but was cut off by those soft lips pressing against her own, swallowing all of her nerves and uncertainty so they couldn't resurface.

"Eet will be okay." Fleur spoke a centimeter away from Hermione's lips as her hand found its way to the back of the prodigy's neck to pull her back in.

Hermione felt herself relax at those words and at Fleur's warm mouth pressing against hers slowly, getting her drunk off the taste of vanilla and the smell of strawberries. The kiss was deep and hypnotizing, lulling Hermione into a dream state that made her forget any sense of self. She suddenly didn't care about what they were doing in the library of all places or that Fleur just knocked her books off the table or that she was a virgin; all she cared about was taking Fleur right there.

Their kissing started to verge on urgent as Hermione pushed her hands the rest of the way up the skirt Fleur had taken from her and grabbed the veela's beautifully sculpted butt, pulling her towards her with a sharp jerk that made Fleur gasp.

Fleur pulled away grinning, her eyes glowing brighter at the unexpected action. "I did not know 'Ermione Granger would like to play rough."

"There's a lot you don't know about me." Hermione mumbled as she started to kiss Fleur's neck, nipping on the skin while one hand made its way to the champion's inner thigh.

"'Ermione . . ." Fleur breathed out in a way that made the brunette want to roll her eyes into the back of her head from how good it sounded coming from those delicious lips.

"Hmmm?" Hermione hummed against the veela's pulse point while her hand slid up sinfully smooth soft skin, only stopping when she felt the edge of Fleur's lingerie.

"'Ermione . . ."

She was about to finally cross the threshold, she was going to take Fleur Delacour right there in the library and for once she didn't feel even the slightest hesitation to do it.

"Ermione."

She pushed her fingers past the thin fabric blocking her from her goal and was about to take the next step with her girlfriend.

"Hermione!"

Hermione shot up in bed, her heart pounding in her chest only to come face to face with Ginerva Weasley.

"Ah!"

"Ah!" Ginny yelped right back and both girls jumped back only to fall off on opposite sides of the bed with a loud thump. "What the bloody hell 'Mione . . ." Ginny groaned as she sat up to look over the bed to see the heated glare of Hermione Granger on the opposite side.

"I should be asking you that." Hermione grumbled. "What are you doing in my bloody room and on my bed!?"

"I was just waking you up for breakfast." Ginny scowled. "You're usually the first one down there so I came to check on you, but you were knocked out cold and mumbling in your sleep."

Hermione turned bright red at the mention of talking in her sleep. "I-I was?"

"Yeah, you were saying something about Fleur." Ginny's scowl turned into a sly smile. "Wait . . . Hermione Granger, were you having a dirty dream?"

"Don't be absurd." Hermione stood up, wiping the imaginary dust off of her while Ginny followed her movement with bright green eyes.

"Oh Merlin!" The chaser jumped up, a giant grin spreading across her face. "You did!"

"I didn't." Hermione grumbled as she tried to fix her hair; she had a horrible case of bed-head.

"Was she any good?" Ginny wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, making Hermione's scowl deepen.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Riiiiight." Ginny rolled her eyes while Hermione turned to glare at her. "What?"

"I need to get changed."

Ginny raised an eyebrow in response. "So?"

Hermione let out an irritated huff before she grabbed the red-head by her elbow and dragged her to the door. "So, that means get out you creep!"

"Oi!" Ginny protested as she was pushed outside of the door. "I'm not the one having dirty dreams about Fleur Delacour!"

"Keep your voice down!" Hermione hissed, her cheeks heating up as she glanced down the hall to make sure no one heard her friend.

"Why? Because it's true?"

"Shut up!" Hermione growled as she slammed the door in the laughing Weasley's face.

/

Twenty minutes later Hermione was welcomed into the great hall by her fellow classmates with wolf whistles that made her bristle and glare at whatever direction she could hear them coming from.

"Oi!" Ron yelled out when she took her seat. "Bugger off!" He growled, making some students laugh and others still their whistling.

"Thanks Ron." Hermione smiled at her overprotective friend.

"You would think they would be over the second task thing by now." Ron grumbled.

Harry let out a sigh as he dropped the Daily Prophet onto the table. "How can they when Rita Skeeter keeps writing about it?"

"What!?" Hermione, Ginny, and Ron cried out in unison.

"She keeps adding to the story." Harry scowled while Hermione snatched the paper off of the table to see a picture of her clinging to Fleur on the dock with a disgruntled looking Viktor Krum and upset looking Harry Potter in the background.

"I am NOT going through champions faster than I go through books!" Hermione growled as she threw the paper down in disgust. "She's making me sound like Pansy Parkinson! The only champion I've actually dated is Fleur!"

All of her friends eyebrows rose up their forehead at the last part. "You're dating Fleur now?"

"I, well . . ." Hermione let out a sigh at the excited look on their faces. "I was trying to keep it somewhat private, but it seems Rita Skeeter is set on making my life a living Hell."

"I knew it." Harry grinned.

"Oooh, so that's why you were having dirty-" Ginny was abruptly cut off by a very red-faced prefect covering her mouth with her hand.

If it was possible Harry and Ron's eyebrows rose even higher up their forehead. "Dirty what?"

"Nothing." Hermione replied a little too quickly with a squeaky voice. "Ew, Ginny!" Hermione yelled as she withdrew her hand as if the red-head had burned her. "That's so disgusting." She grumbled as she wiped her hand on the younger girl's robes.

"I bet you wouldn't think it was gross if Fleur did it." Ginny smirked.

Hermione rolled her eyes in response. "How did you know how much I love when Fleur licks my hand?"

Ron scrunched his nose at the imagery. "Fleur licks your hand?"

Hermione, Ginny, and Harry looked at each other, trying to keep a straight face before they cracked and they all burst into a fit of laughter.

/

Fleur awoke with a soft groan, forcing herself to sit up in bed as the morning light mercilessly poured in through her window. She winced when she felt a dull pain in her side where one of the Grindylows stabbed her deeper than the others. "Damn creatures." Fleur grumbled to herself as she rubbed her sore ribs before she carefully got out of bed. In hindsight, it might have been a good idea to have stayed in the infirmary for at least one more day, but she had already made her decision and there was no way she would go crawling back to that insufferable nurse.

After taking a shower she stood in front of her dresser in her underwear, eyeing her dress apprehensively. "Zis ees nozing." Fleur mumbled as she grabbed the garment and shimmied into it, but when it came to putting her arms through the holes she grit her teeth when she felt her body rebel against her.

The creek of her door pulled her attention away from the task at hand and she was met with a deeply frowning Gabrielle. _**"You really are too stubborn for your own good."**_

" _ **I have no idea what you're talking about."**_ Fleur put her nose in the air as she pushed one arm through the hole of her dress, trying to seem unphased by the pain, but the grimace on her face gave her away.

" _ **Fleur!"**_ Gabrielle scolded her older sister as she rushed over and helped her with the other arm.

" _ **I don't need help."**_ Fleur grumbled.

" _ **Clearly."**_ Gabrielle spoke with a glare as she took a step back. " _ **You shouldn't have left the infirmary. You still need to be looked after and you need to take it easy."**_

" _ **I see mother being here for all of a couple hours has already rubbed off on you."**_ Fleur replied with a roll of her eyes.

Gabrielle's face hardened, catching her older sister off-guard. " _ **Do you really think that's what this is about?"**_

" _ **I don't-"**_

" _ **You're always so reckless."**_ Gabrielle growled as she crossed her arms, looking off to the side. " _ **You almost died and instead of getting rest, you're being beyond stupid and acting as if nothing happened."**_

" _ **I'm not-"**_

" _ **You know, when you would disappear during the summer for a couple weeks without so much as a word to anyone to go party in some other country with Veronique it wasn't mom and dad lying awake at night worried about you."**_ Fleur furrowed her brow in confusion at the tirade her sister was going on; it would seem there was still some pent up resentment. " _ **They weren't the ones wondering if you were alright, if you had been kidnapped, if you had been hurt, or if you were ever coming back. It was me."**_

Fleur's face softened at her younger sister's confession. " _ **Gabrielle . . . I had no idea that I worried you."**_

" _ **Well, you did."**_ Gabrielle sniffed, trying to keep her face hard, but Fleur could see the love and concern etched all over the youngest Delacour's face. " _ **So just . . . be more considerate and don't go dying."**_

A soft smile spread across Fleur's face as she nodded her head, her heart warmed by the fact her little sister had cared so much and she had no idea. " _ **Okay. I'll do better."**_

" _ **Good."**_ Gabrielle put her nose up and was about to leave, but was pulled into a tight hug by her older sibling.

" _ **Thank you."**_ Fleur smiled into her sister's hair.

" _ **For what?"**_ Gabrielle replied stiffly, standing rigid in the older girl's arms.

Fleur kissed the top of Gabrielle's head before she pulled away, holding the young veela at arms length. " _ **For caring about me when I didn't even deserve it."**_

" _ **Someone had to."**_ Gabrielle mumbled, avoiding the bright sapphire eyes staring straight through her. " _ **Don't be getting soft on me now."**_

Fleur just let out a laugh in response, ruffling her sister's hair, making the younger girl scowl. " _ **Of course not. Now come on, let's go get breakfast. I'm starving."**_

/

When Fleur and Gabrielle walked into the great hall Gabrielle started to head to the Ravenclaw table, but was surprised when she was tugged in the other direction towards the Gryffindors. Her confusion was cleared up when she saw the bright smile on her sister's face directed at the back of Hermione Granger's head and had to refrain from rolling her eyes.

"Good morning." Fleur smiled as she plopped down next to Hermione, making the bookworm jump a little, but she smiled upon seeing the beaming veela.

"Oh, hey there Fleur." Hermione's face heated up when the blonde placed a quick kiss on her cheek.

"How are you feeling?" Harry smiled over at his blushing friend and her oblivious girlfriend.

"Just a little sore." Fleur shrugged as she grabbed a strawberry from Hermione's yogurt and took a bite out of it, not noticing how the golden girl's eyes glossed over when she licked the remnants of yogurt from her pink lips.

"Wow, you're brave." Ginny laughed, earning her a glare from her genius friend and a confused look from Fleur. "Usually, Mione would kill someone for taking food off of her plate." Ginny glanced over to Ron who was still wearing the glazed over look Hermione had just been wearing, earning him a hard kick in the shin from the golden girl.

"Ow!" He cried out, but had the decency to duck his head and look embarrassed when he saw Hermione scowling at him. "Sorry."

Fleur just laughed in response as she took a raspberry and plopped it into her mouth. "'Ermione doesn't mind sharing wiz me. Do you chérie?" Fleur smirked when she saw Hermione's cheeks heat up again.

"I suppose it's-"

"Bonjour." Veronique smiled as she took it upon herself to sit on the other side of Hermione a little too close for Fleur's liking with Odette following close behind, sitting next to Gabrielle. "I see we are sitting at ze Gryffindor table now."

"WE don't 'ave to sit at ze Gryffindor table." Gabrielle grumbled. "You could always go back to ze Ravenclaw one."

Veronique laughed, waving the youngest Delacour off. "You're always ze joker Gabrielle. You know Fleur and I do everyzing togezer." The raven-haired girl winked a dark emerald eye at a very perplexed Hermione Granger as she threw a blueberry into her mouth.

Fleur visibly stiffened at Veronique's flirty nature directed at her new girlfriend, making implications she did not like in the least. "We don't do everyzing togezer." Fleur threw her arm around Hermione, pulling the brunette closer to her to reiterate that the golden girl was off-limits to Veronique's deviant nature.

"Eef you say so." Veronique scoffed and eyed Fleur's hand on the prefect's shoulder with an odd look in those emerald eyes, but before anyone could notice it the look was gone and replaced with a predatory smile. "By ze way, where are your manners Fleur? You 'avent properly introduced me to your new friends."

"I-I'm Ron." Ron immediately jumped in, holding out his sweaty hand to the new beautiful French girl sitting at their table. "Ronald Weasley." He tried to put on his most charming smile, but it came out looking weird.

"Ron, what is wrong with you?" Ginny asked with a raised eyebrow. "Are you constipated or something?

"What!?" Ron looked absolutely petrified by his sister's question that made the newcomer snigger. "N-no!"

Ginny just rolled her eyes at her flustered sibling before she turned her gaze to Veronique. "Sorry about my brother there. I'm Ginny."

"And I'm-"

"Harry Potter." Veronique's predatory smile returned as she narrowed in on the boy who lived. "I know who you are. I know who you all are actually."

"Zen why did you ask for an introduction?" Gabrielle growled irritably.

Veronique rolled her jade eyes in response to the jab. "Because some people still 'ave manners."

Gabrielle almost laughed at the absurdity of Veronique having manners, but a quick stern look from her sister made her keep her mouth shut.

"Ooh, what's zis?" Veronique grinned as she grabbed the Daily Prophet from off the table to read the cover.

"A load of rubbish." Hermione grumbled as she stabbed at her yogurt with her spoon.

Fleur frowned when she saw the irritated look on her girlfriend's face and tried to get a glimpse of the paper. "What ees eet?"

"Looks like you two made ze cover again." Veronique laughed, tossing the paper to Fleur.

"Does zat woman 'ave nozing better to write about?" Fleur groaned.

"They're painting Mione out to be some kind of . . ." Ron scrunched up his nose, looking for the least offensive word he could use to say what he wanted to so he wouldn't receive another kick in the shin from his friend.

"Slut?" Veronique finished with a raised eyebrow, earning herself a glare from Fleur.

Ron cleared his throat nervously, looking at Hermione's scowl then to Veronique's amused face. "That's one way to put it."

"Eet ees absurd, non?" Fleur jumped in with a frown of her own, squeezing the brunette's shoulder in a way she hoped was reassuring; she was still a little clumsy when it came to platonic gestures. "I mean she ees a virgin and she ees-"

Hermione immediately bristled at Fleur's statement and cut her off before she could finish. "Who ever said I was a virgin?"

Every single pair of eyes in the group snapped to Hermione at the question. "You're not?" Veronique asked with an amused smile; it was clear to her the young Gryffindor was lying, but not so clear to Fleur who had visibly stiffened.

"Nope." Hermione replied haughtily.

"Who did you sleep wiz?" Fleur asked with a tint of edge in her voice.

Further down the table Odette cleared her throat, earning her a sharp glare from her alpha while she tried to shake her head with wide eyes, telling her this was a bad road to go down.

"Does it matter?" Hermione asked nonchalantly as she took a drink of her orange juice while Veronique's eyes lit up with glee at the rage in Fleur's.

"Per'aps zis isn't-" Odette started, but was cut off by Ginny.

"Please don't tell me it was Ron. I'm going to barf up my breakfast right here if it was." Ginny groaned as she looked to her brother glaring at her.

"You?" Fleur growled, her sharp gaze turning to the scowling Weasley who promptly shrunk in his seat when he felt the chill of Fleur Delacour's icy stare.

"Ew! Of course not!" Hermione cried out while everyone watched her, completely perplexed.

"Gee, thanks." Ron mumbled.

"Why didn't you tell us Mione?" Harry frowned at the brunette.

"Why in the world would I tell you boys about that?" Hermione grumbled, crossing her arms, not noticing Fleur had removed her arm from around her shoulder.

"I would tell you." Ron cried out.

Hermione scrunched her nose at the red-head. "I would prefer if you didn't."

"Well, who was eet zen?" Veronique smirked; she knew once there was a name and face to who had taken Hermione Granger's virginity Fleur was going to finally snap.

Hermione shrugged. "He doesn't go to Hogwarts."

"What ees 'is name?" Veronique's smirk widened into a sinister smile when she saw how angry Fleur was becoming while Hermione seemed to grow nervous.

"Oh wait, now I remember. It was that Australian bloke you told me about last year, right?" Ginny jumped in while Hermione smiled at her gratefully. "What was his name again . . .? Austin, right?"

"Austin?" Fleur growled and Hermione finally noticed the irritated look written all over her girlfriend's face. She hadn't meant to make Fleur cross, but as stupid and childish as she knew it was, she hated the idea of being the only inexperienced person at the table and the condescending look Veronique gave her when she said she wasn't a virgin.

"It hardly matters." Harry shrugged, trying to ease the tension. "That still doesn't make Mione a slut."

"Oui, eet doesn't matter at all." Veronique smiled over at Harry before turning her attention back to the 'happy' new couple next to her. "Right Fleur?"

"Right." Fleur replied with her lips in a straight line as she tried to contain the thrashing veela inside of her. She was supposed to be Hermione's first, not some Australian named Austin.

"Right well . . ." Ginny stood up, feeling the tension hanging heavy in the air and despite popular belief, she did know when to take her leave. "I should probably be heading to class. I don't think I want detention with Snape first day back from break."

"Oh bugger." Ron jumped up, placing his open palm on his face. "I bloody forgot my books."

Harry seemed to pale and slowly stood up. "You too?" Odette asked with an amused smile.

"Me?" Harry laughed nervously. "No, of course not. I forgot something else entirely."

Hermione rolled her eyes at her friend as he scurried off after Ron. "He forgot his books. Those boys really are two peas in a pod."

"I suppose we should head to class too." Odette smiled as she stood up with Gabrielle, still sensing how tense her alpha was.

Both veela gave Veronique a pointed look, but the look rolled off the raven-haired girl content to sit and see how everything played out. "Veronique." Gabrielle growled, earning her a sharp glare.

"I'm not done eating yet."

"'ere, take some for ze road zen." Fleur put on a fake smile as she shoved some grapes into the nosey witches' hand, earning a glare.

"Fine." Veronique grumbled before she got up and reluctantly walked away from the fight that was sure to happen.

Now that the two were alone, they both sat there in silence, neither one really knowing what to say in the moment; it was clear Fleur was not happy with this revelation and Hermione was confused. It was obvious Fleur was no virgin herself, so why should it matter if she wasn't either? Sure she was lying, but that was entirely beside the point. "Is . . . everything alright Fleur?"

"Oui." Fleur replied curtly, glaring down at the table.

Hermione let out a sigh when she saw the furrow in Fleur's brow; she knew that look well. Who would have ever though Fleur Delacour was the jealous and possessive type. "Fleur . . ." Hermione breathed out as she ran one hand down the champion's forearm down to her hand where she intertwined their fingers beneath the table. Bright sapphires softened at the feel of the golden girl's soothing touch and turned to see amber eyes looking back at her, not with an angry expression, but one of understanding. "It doesn't seem like it."

Fleur felt her veela relax when Hermione scooted a little closer, looking at her with those doe eyes that made her melt and forget the idiotic thing she was angry about in the first place. "Eets nozing chérie." Fleur smiled softly at the prefect. "I am just irritable because of zis stupid recovery. Eet 'urts sometimes and I get achey."

Hermione blushed at the key phrases her real Fleur used, but was said so differently by dream Fleur. "I-I'm sorry."

"Eets fine." Fleur tried to wave it off, but grimaced when a sharp pain in her ribs made her lean over a bit.

Hermione frowned, breaking out of her dream state when she saw her girlfriend in pain. "You need to go back to the nurse."

Fleur paled at Hermione's words, not wanting to go back there to face the wrath of Madam Pomfrey. "Absolutely not! Zat woman will never let me leave eef I do."

Hermione eyed the veela for a moment and sympathized with her hatred of the infirmary, but at the same time she couldn't stand the thought of Fleur suffering. "Fine, how about this . . . I'll sneak in and get you some potions to help with the healing pain, but if that doesn't help you have to go back. Deal?"

A sly smile slid across Fleur's face as she nodded her head. "Eet looks like 'Ermione Granger ees actually quite ze rule breaker. I was lead to believe ozerwise."

Hermione just rolled her eyes with a smile in response as she stood up, slinging her book bag over her shoulder. "So . . ." Hermione chewed on her lower lip nervously as she looked down to the ground before lifting her gaze back to arctic blue eyes watching her curiously. "Everything is alright then? There's nothing you need to talk to me about?"

Fleur fought with herself for a moment over her response; she wanted to berate the Gryffindor with her questions about this Austin boy, but upon seeing the worried look swimming in those golden eyes she settled on **burying** it even though the veela in her demanded answers and retribution. "Everyzing ees fine." She put on her most convincing smile, standing up to press a kiss to Hermione's lips that made the prefect blush.

"Right." Hermione nodded her head, not quite convinced Fleur was okay with the thought of her not being a virgin for some odd reason. "Well, I'll come bring you the potions as soon as possible. Try not to strain yourself too much okay?"

Fleur nodded her head. "I won't."

"I mean it." Hermione pointed an accusing finger in the veela's face that made her laugh.

"Okay, okay." Fleur smiled, holding up her hands defensively. "I promise."

/

Later that day Fleur sat in transfiguration next to Veronique, tapping her nails on the desk, deep in thought about her new girlfriend who seemed to be full of surprises while Veronique watched her with an amused look.

" _ **Still stewing about the whole Austin thing?"**_

Fleur sat up a bit straighter in her seat, putting on her best neutral face, but it was already too late; she had revealed herself to her friend. " _ **Not at all."**_

Veronique rolled her eyes at the blonde feigning indifference. " _ **Riiiight. You're not jealous at all that your little girlfriend has slept with someone before you or at least that's what she claims."**_

The champion narrowed her eyes at the girl sitting next to her. " _ **What are you trying to say?"**_

" _ **You really need me to spell it out for you?"**_ Veronique laughed. " _ **It's obvious that frigid girl is a virgin. She's just lying to save face."**_

" _ **She's not frigid."**_ Fleur growled.

" _ **Oh, yes she is."**_ Veronique smirked. " _ **Because if she had put out for you, you would have never stooped so low as to make her your girlfriend and you would already be over her by now and let's be honest . . ."**_ A lecherous smile replaced her smirk as she eyed the veela hungerly. " _ **Who wouldn't put out for you?"**_

" _ **Sex has nothing to do with any of this."**_ Fleur replied haughtily. " _ **I love her."**_

Veronique ignored the sharp sting of those words stabbed into her chest as she tried to appear aloof and uncaring. " _ **You don't love her. You just think that being with some innocent virgin will somehow help you regain your old self that got tarnished by that stupid boy."**_

Fleur grit her teeth at her friend's easy dismissal of her feelings. " _ **That's not true."**_

" _ **Want to bet?"**_ Veronique smirked as she leaned forward in her chair with mischief glimmering in her eyes.

" _ **No, I told you I'm done with all of that."**_

" _ **So, you told her about the bet then right?"**_ Veronique's lips curled into a wicked smile when she saw Fleur fidget uncomfortably in her seat. " _ **I mean, seeing as you've turned a new leaf and all, I would assume you would have since you love her oh so much."**_

" _ **Of course I did."**_ Fleur stuck her nose into the air, trying to seem irritated instead of worried by the evil glimmer in those jade eyes that used to spark a fire in the pit of her stomach, but now it made her uneasy.

" _ **Well then, I mis-spoke."**_ Veronique leaned back in her chair with a self-satisfied grin knowing that Fleur was lying through her teeth; she was far too scared to tell the golden girl the truth. She would let her live in her fantasy world for now, but she had already planted the seed of doubt in the blonde's head she knew would grow the more time she thought about it. There was no way someone like Fleur Delacour could really be in love with Hermione Granger; she was simply in lust. " _ **But there is no way that girl is telling the truth. She is either lying about who she slept with or she is a virgin."**_ Fleur gave the girl an incredulous look that made her roll her deep green eyes. " _ **I can prove it."**_

A dangerous glint flashed through icy blue eyes at the mention of proving Hermione was untouched. " _ **I already told you she is off limits."**_

" _ **You're so uptight."**_ Veronique laughed. " _ **You really need to get laid so you can . . ."**_ She smirked as she slid a hand up Fleur's thigh, making the champion scowl. " _ **Release some of that built up tension."**_

With a flick of her wrist Fleur slapped the other girl's hand off of her thigh. " _ **I told you we're not doing that anymore."**_

" _ **Why?"**_ Veronique scoffed. _ **"Hermione doesn't know how to share?"**_

" _ **I would never-"**_

McGonagall clearing her throat interrupted the pair mid banter. "Is there something interesting you ladies would like to share with the class?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Non Professeur." Fleur answered quickly, giving Veronique a sharp glare that just made her friend want to laugh.

/

After Transfiguration Fleur walked the hallways with her books held tightly to her chest with a frown adorning her face as Veronique's words raced through her head. '' _Ermione was lying to me about who she slept wiz . . .? Zat can't be true. Unless . . .'_ Her arctic gaze landed on a random boy walking by suspiciously. ' _She slept wiz someone een ze school.'_

Fleur bristled at just the thought, squeezing her text book so tight it made her knuckles go white. The idea of someone else touching what she believed was hers and hers alone made her veela thrash around. Hermione Granger was hers to claim. She paused in her steps when she saw the girl plaguing her thoughts sitting on a bench next to Ginny chatting.

"So, do you mind telling me why you lied about being a virgin to Fleur and everyone?" Ginny asked as she looked over at her friend curiously. "I mean, you know I don't mind covering for you. It just seemed very out of character of you."

Hermione chewed on her lower lip as she looked down. "I just . . . I don't like the way I get talked about. Everyone thinks I'm a prude and it's so obvious Fleur and Veronique are much more experienced than me."

Ginny let out a sigh at the brunette's confession. "That shouldn't matter Mione."

"I know . . ." Hermione let out sigh. "It was stupid. That Veronique just gives me an odd feeling and it made me get all defensive."

"Yeah, I know what you're talking about. She gave me the heebey jeebies." Ginny let out a shudder at just the thought of the raven-haired girl. "She a cocky git that one."

"It kind of makes me wonder why they're even friends." Hermione mumbled. "And what in the bloody hell did she mean when she said that they do everything together and then proceeded to wink at me."

"It seemed like she was coming on to you." Ginny grimaced. "Which is totally fucked if Fleur really is her best friend."

"Yeah, right?"

"Hey there Hermione." Viktor smiled as he approached the two girls on the bench. "How are you feeling?" He asked as he fidgeted nervously; he still wasn't quite sure how to talk to the golden girl after the whole Yule Ball incident.

"Fine, actually." Hermione smiled up at the Bulgarian. "Sorry we haven't had much time to chat."

"It's fine." He waved off her apology which wasn't needed in any way. Viktor Krum wasn't an unreasonable person and knew that the prefect had issues of her own. "How is Fleur?"

Hermione was surprised for a moment at his question, it was no secret that he and Fleur were not each other's biggest fans, but it was nice to see her new friend make an effort. "She's doing alright. Still recovering from the second task."

"Vell, I hope she recovers soon even if she is my competition." He smiled down at the bookworm before he awkwardly cleared his throat. "Listen, about Fleur . . . there are some things I have been meaning to speak vith you about. I-"

"Bonjour." Fleur breezed up to the trio, smiling at Ginny before she eyed the seeker suspiciously as she plopped down next to Hermione and threw her legs over her girlfriend's lap, making Hermione blush when she looked down to see her Beuxbatons uniform ride up a bit, giving her a flash of her dream once more. "I missed you." Fleur smiled as she placed a kiss on Hermione's cheek.

Hermione felt her cheeks heat up even more at the open displays of affection while Ginny sniggered at how uncomfortable she clearly was. "I missed you too." Hermione mumbled as Viktor shifted his weight onto his other foot nervously.

Fleur smiled victoriously at how much she affected her girlfriend before she turned her attention to the Bulgarian standing awkwardly in front of them. "Oh, 'ello Viktor. I did not see you zere." Fleur smirked as she threw an arm around Hermione, quietly claiming her territory, but it was obvious to everyone what was happening.

"Hello Fleur." He grumbled as he crossed his arms. "I see you're feeling better."

"Oui." The blonde put on a fake smile. "'Ermione 'as taken good care of me. Right mon amour?" She asked as she idly played with Hermione's light brown hair with her fingertips.

"Uh . . . " Hermione had to fight every instinct she had to swat Fleur's hand away from her hair when it was so painfully obvious she was marking her territory. "Right."

"That is good to hear." Viktor replied insincerely as he adjusted the strap of his bookbag on his shoulder. "Vell, I should be going. I vill talk to you later Hermione."

Hermione shot him an apologetic smile before he departed, leaving her to deal with the veela pretty much in her lap. "Fleur . . ." Hermione sighed, looking over to the blonde glaring at Viktor's back and then anyone who got too close for her liking.

Ginny stood up when she felt the tension hanging in the air once more; it would seem the virgin thing was still bothering Hermione's new girlfriend and she was doing a horrible job of hiding it. "I should get going too actually. I'll see you in the dorms." Ginny squeezed Hermione's shoulder, shooting her an amused smile before she fled.

"Alone at last." Fleur grinned as she leaned in to kiss the prefect, but Hermione moved back a bit with a stern look on her face, making the champion furrow her brow in confusion. "What ees wrong?"

"Mind telling me what all this is about?" Hermione asked, pointing at Fleur's legs draped over her own.

"I'm French." Fleur shrugged. "We are very affectionate. I can show you what I mean eef you want to go somewhere more private." She smiled as she leaned in towards her girlfriend once more, but Hermione moved back even more with a frown.

"This isn't like you." She sighed. "Do you want to actually talk about what is bothering you?"

Fleur let out a huff at being brushed off so easily and removed her legs from Hermione's lap so she could sit up straight. "I 'ave no idea what you are talking about."

"So, you're going to stick with the stubborn act?" Hermione asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I am not being stubborn." Fleur growled. "Eef anyzing, you are ze one acting odd as eef you are 'iding somezing."

"Hiding something?"

"Oui." Fleur stood up, glaring down at the bookworm.

"What could I possibly be hiding?" Hermione scoffed, but on the inside she was nervous. She knew it was stupid to lie about something as trivial as her virginity, but Fleur's attitude about it was making things so much worse.

"I don't know . . ." Fleur put her finger to her chin in thought. "Per'aps ze person you slept wiz." She growled, her icy blues narrowing in on bewildered amber.

"What?"

"You slept wiz someone 'ere didn't you?" She asked with clenched fists.

Hermione stood up, glaring right back at the foreigner. "I thought you said that didn't matter."

Fleur scoffed in response. "Eet doesn't. I just don't know why you are lying about eet."

"I'm not lying." Hermione replied stubbornly, refusing to back down to any challenge, even if it was to her detriment. "And even if I did, what difference would it make?"

Fleur's eyes lit up in anger at what she thought to be a confession. "So eet was someone 'ere. Who ees eet?"

"I didn't sleep with anyone here Fleur." Hermione sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose to fight off the headache creeping up on her. "This is so bloody stupid. I don't ask you about whoever you have slept with."

"Zat ees different." Fleur replied indignantly.

Hermione threw up her hands at the absurdity of everything. "How?"

Fleur's only response was a shrug of her shoulders as she looked off to the side; she knew she was wrong. So very wrong, but it was hard to think straight when the veela in her was demanding blood for such an offense.

"Great. Bloody great." Hermione grumbled. "Well, I would love to sit here and argue with you over something so stupid in trivial, but unfortunately I have class. Talk to me when you're actually ready to have a real conversation." She grumbled, breezing past the blonde who stood in the same spot looking off to the side for a moment still before her arctic eyes drifted to her girlfriends retreating back.

' _Way to go.'_ Fleur thought irritably as she let out a sigh when Hermione disappeared out of sight. ' _Way to push 'er away for no reason when you are ze one wiz secrets.'_ She felt like an absolute idiot for reacting the way that she did. She hated how her insecurities she thought she put far behind her clawed their way to the surface when it came to someone she truly cared about.

With a heavy heart Fleur dragged herself to her next class that she barely paid any attention in; she was too occupied writing in her journal to really listen to a word the professor said, but luckily for her it looked as if she was writing notes so she was left to work out her problems by putting her pen to paper which always seemed to help.

She furrowed her brow as she scribbled, too deep in thought to even hear they were dismissed, but a tap to her shoulder made her jump. "Class is dismissed." Came a dreamy voice.

Fleur blushed when she turned and found the classroom empty except for her and the odd girl that she had spoken to in the bathroom when she first got there. "Oh, merci." Fleur mumbled as she quickly snapped her journal shut before Luna could see what was written.

"You know . . . you needn't worry so much." Luna smiled as she rocked back and forth on her heals while Fleur looked at her skeptically.

"What do you mean?"

"Everyone has insecurities." Luna smiled as she looked up at the ceiling. "Even Hermione."

Fleur sighed as she stood up. "Like what?"

"That's not my place to talk about." The odd girl replied, turning her attention back to curious blue orbs. "But perhaps if approached with patience and understanding she might talk about it."

"'Ow can I be zose zings when she ees being so difficult?" Fleur grumbled as she crossed her arms.

"Pride will always be the longest distance between two people." And with that last statement hanging in the air the dreamy girl disappeared, leaving Fleur to her thoughts once more. She knew she was being irrational and that strange girl filled her with a lot of questions.

' _What could she be insecure about?'_ Fleur frowned as she walked down the hallway. ' _Ees she ashamed of who she slept wiz?'_

"Oi." A somewhat familiar voice made Fleur pause in her steps, looking over to see dark hair and light green eyes glaring at her. "Where's Granger?"

"Why do you want to know?" Fleur asked suspiciously with a raised eyebrow as she felt her veela's temper slightly rise at the Slytherin she believed to be called Pansy.

"Her and I have a score to settle." She replied with a smirk as she crossed her arms. "You see, we have history . . ." She trailed off and Fleur felt her anger return full force. Was this the girl who took her virginity? Is this why Hermione was ashamed?

"Per'aps you can settle eet wiz me zen." Fleur growled as she took a threatening step forward. "Seeing as I am 'er girlfriend."

"Protective are we?" Pansy laughed, trying to keep up her tough girl façade in the face of a very angry veela. "No reason we can't have history too Delacour." She said with a wink.

"What 'istory do you speak of?"

"I guess you can say her and I got pretty well . . ." Pansy pretended to search for the right word to drag out the delicious moment that was obviously enraging the girl in front of her. "Acquainted last year. I just merely wanted to get back in touch. We have so much to catch up on."

Pansy's statement wasn't much, but it was enough to make the champion finally snap. She had been torturing herself all day, wondering who touched Hermione before her and it was fairly obvious to her that this girl was the one and that was simply unacceptable. "Stay away from 'er." Fleur growled as she pulled out her wand, holding it to the cocky girl's throat.

"Whoa, no need to get defensive." Pansy spoke as she raised her hands to show she was harmless, but it did little to deter the already enraged foreigner who kept her hand steady and her gaze hard and cold as ice.

Fleur stood her ground, fighting with herself if she should hex the smug look off of the girl for good measure, but the sound of someone hitting the wall made her snap her attention to the side only to see Hermione Granger holding Draco Malfoy by the front of his robes with a fire burning in those bright amber eyes.

"You know, sneaking up on someone when their back is turned is low even for you Malfoy." She spoke through gritted teeth while the slightly taller boy scowled at her.

"Get your bloody hands off of me." He spat back, his eyes flickering to Harry and Ron holding their wands to Crabbe and Goyle then to Fleur's icy gaze. "I wasn't going to-"

Malfoy tried to move forward, but the golden girl was deceivingly strong and just shoved him harder into the wall, keeping her grip firm. "I know what you were going to do." Hermione scowled. "I just didn't think you were that big of a coward."

"Careful who you call a coward mud-" Malfoy started but his eyes widened and he turned deathly pale when Fleur Delacour's wand was suddenly a centimeter from his face.

"Say eet." Her eyes were now glowing a dangerous blue.

"I-I . . ." He stuttered stupidly, looking for anyone to help him, but all of his friends were currently being held up. "Listen . . ." He sighed. "This is all a big misunderstanding."

"Oh, bloody hell." Ron grimaced when he took note of something everyone else had missed. "He's got a bloody hard on."

A look of disgust immediately crossed Hermione's face and she quickly let go of the greasy boy. "Gross Malfoy!"

"I knew it. Didn't I tell you Harry?" Ron asked as he looked over to his equally disturbed friend. "I always knew Malfoy really fancied Mione. That's why he always picks on her."

"I don't fancy her Weasley!" Draco spoke with bright red cheeks while Fleur's eyes started to glow brighter, ready to hex the boy to next week for getting excited by HER girlfriend.

"Clearly." Hermione mumbled as she glanced down to the tent in the boys pants who proceeded to quickly cover himself with his robes in hopes of hiding his excitement.

"You know, I've heard about this before." Harry spoke with a grin, trying to contain his laughter at this point. "I believe they call it a fearection."

"Bugger off you lot!" Draco replied haughtily before he quickly stormed off with his posse in tow.

Fleur went to go after the retreating Slytherins to teach them a lesson they would never forget, but a sharp pain in her ribs made her stutter in her steps and lean over.

"Fleur." Hermione frowned as she rushed over to the blonde clearly in pain, placing a gentle hand on her back. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Fleur spoke as she tried to straighten herself out, but that proved to be a bad idea when another sharp pain ensued and she let out a little hiss of pain.

"You're hurt." Hermione sighed as she reached into her bookbag and took out a potion. "Drink this. I took it from Pomfrey. It should help with the pain and speed up the healing process." The stubborn champion hesitantly took the vial from Hermione's waiting hands and drank it in one swig, grimacing when the bitter taste hit her lips. "I know it tastes bloody awful, but it is going to make you feel a lot better."

"Merci." Fleur spoke softly, looking up to worried amber and giving her a small smile. She was honestly surprised that Hermione still snuck in and got her the potion after the way she acted today, but was very grateful nonetheless. "'Ermione . . ." She sighed as she finally stood up straight. "Listen, I-"

" _ **Fleur, what do you think you're doing?"**_ Came Madame Maxime's voice, making the veela cringe at her tone. It was like the woman could sniff out Fleur when she was getting herself in trouble and that was beyond irritating to the champion.

" _ **I was just-"**_

" _ **You need to be getting rest in the carriage so we can resume your training as soon as possible."**_ The towering woman scowled. Fleur returned the scowl in kind, not at all happy with the idea of lying in bed anymore. She opened her mouth to say something more to her girlfriend, but before she could say one more word she was already grabbed by her elbow. _**"Come now, we must be going."**_

Fleur shot Hermione an apologetic look before she was dragged out of the castle and into the snow towards the carriage while Hermione just stood there rubbing her arm awkwardly; she really needed to make things right with the golden girl and soon.

/

Later that day, after lying in bed for an hour, Fleur felt herself going insane already. She wanted to see the brunette, wanted to get to the bottom of what happened, and apologize and there was no way she was going to be able to do that from her room so she resorted to sneaking out of the carriage.

She wrapped her arms around herself as the chill from the last snowfall hit her and her boots crunched in the glistening soft snow. She was going over what she was going to say to the prefect when she saw her, trying to remind herself to remain calm and rein in her temper when something soft and cold collided with the back of her head.

She whipped around to scowl at who would be brave enough to throw a snowball at Fleur Delacour only to see Hermione Granger with pink cheeks grinning at her with another snowball balled up in her hand, ready to be launched.

Fleur tried to look as menacing as possible to deter the Gryffindor. "Don't you dare."

"Oh?" Hermione asked with a raised eyebrow. "Why shouldn't I? I'm mad at you after all." She emphasized her point by throwing the snowball and hitting the veela right in the face. Fleur stood there in shock, her arctic eyes narrowing as she wiped the snow from her face with one hand to see Hermione smiling smugly at her. "Wow, that felt really good." The prefect laughed.

"Oh, did eet?" Fleur asked with a growl as she leaned down and gathered as much snow as she could before she crunched it into a tight ball. "Well per'aps I'm still cross wiz you Mademoiselle Granger."

"Me?" Hermione pointed to herself incredulously. "You're the one acting like a right prat!" She glared right back at the veela as she gathered up more snow, quickly forming her own snowball.

"Moi!?" Fleur scoffed. "You are ze one who ees being difficult!" The champion threw the snowball as hard as she could and smirked when it hit Hermione in the face, evening the score and leaving the war hero stunned. "You were right." Fleur spoke in a casual tone that set her girlfriends teeth on edge as she looked down at her nails. "Zat did feel good."

"Oh, that's it!" Hermione cried out as she launched her snowball, hitting Fleur in the chest. They stood there glaring at each other for a moment and in a split second all chaos broke loose as they went about running and gathering as much snow as they could.

Fleur jumped over tree branches, ducking and dodging Hermione's flying icy weapons while throwing some of her own whenever the coast was clear, but that was rare. It would seem Hermione Granger was relentless and as competitive as her, but she had an ace up her sleeve.

After getting pegged in the body with another snowball Fleur made a show of leaning forward and groaning as she held on to her ribs, her blonde hair spilling forward and hiding her smile.

Hermione promptly dropped all of her snowballs when she saw the champion in pain, inwardly chiding herself for not being careful of her injury. "Oh Merlin, Fleur. I'm so sorry." She quickly approached the injured girl to check on her. "I didn't mean to-Ah!"

Once Hermione had gotten close enough Fleur quickly grabbed the prefect and twisted their bodies, bringing the war hero to the ground and pinning her with a triumphant gleam shining in those sapphire orbs.

"That was a bloody dirty trick." Hermione scowled.

Fleur just laid above Hermione buried in the thick snow with the veela as her only source of warmth, her breath coming out in thick clouds as she panted and looked down, admiring the beautiful stony face of Hermione Granger glaring up at her. They stared each other down, bright amber clashing with icy blue before Fleur's lips twitched into a smile and they both burst into a fit of laughter.

"I'm sorry for getting you with the snowball Fleur." Hermione smiled up at the perfect specimen above her. "I just couldn't pass up the opportunity."

"I'm glad you did." Fleur smiled back, looking down adoringly at the Gryffindor. "I deserved eet."

"Hmmm . . . you don't say." Hermione hummed.

"Je suis désolé 'Ermione . . .' Fleur sighed as she ran one hand through Hermione's soft brown locks. "I guess I just got . . ." She looked off to the side, hating being vulnerable, but it was obviously necessary to fix things. "Jealous. I know eet shouldn't matter eef you are a virgin or not and eet doesn't . . . I just don't like ze idea of someone else touching you, because . . ." Fleur brought her silvery blue eyes back to the golden ones watching her with nothing but love and understanding. "you are special to me and I love you."

"Oh, Fleur." Hermione let out a sigh, lifting her hand to rest on the veela's cold cheek. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have said anything . . . I shouldn't have . . ." She gulped, hating the idea of swallowing her pride, but Fleur had clearly done so for her so it would be just plain wrong for her to not do the same. "Lied." Fleur raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow down at the prefect, feeling that familiar jealousy bubble in her chest.

"Did you sleep wiz zat 'orrid Slyzerin girl?"

A look of pure disgust and horror crossed Hermione's face at just the thought. "Pansy!? No! Of course not! Merlin knows she tried . . ." Fleur's eyes started to glow at that statement alone, making her want to go up to that castle and teach the raven-haired girl a lesson, but Hermione was quick to clarify what she meant. "But that doesn't matter. What I'm trying to say is . . ." She let out a sigh, relenting to finally just spit the truth out. "I am a virgin Fleur."

Fleur felt her body immediately relax and all tension leave her in relief at the confession while her veela jumped for joy inside of her. "Why did you lie mon amour?"

Hermione was thankful that it was so cold outside that her cheeks were already flushed so it would be hard to differentiate if she was blushing or just cold. "Because you and your friends are obviously . . ." Hermione paused for a moment, trying to find the right word. "Experienced and it's kind of you know, intimidating. I didn't want you to think I knew nothing on the matter and didn't want you to see me as some naïve virgin."

Fleur felt her smile return and heart warm at the confession. "'Ermione, eef eet makes you feel any better, I 'ave never been wiz a virgin before."

"Why in the bloody hell would that make me feel better?" Hermione laughed, making her girlfriend laugh too.

"Well, eet means I am just as nervous as you." Fleur spoke softly as she started to lean down. "Zat ees a big responsibility."

"One I'm sure you're happy to take on." Hermione rolled her eyes as Fleur nodded her head with a small smile.

Fleur brought her soft pink lips just close enough to feel Hermione's warm breath tickle her skin, her eyes flickering up to see vulnerability shining in those usually well-guarded amber eyes that made her pause her actions. "But only when ze time ees right chérie. I will wait as long as eet takes, because you, mon amour, are worz waiting for."

Hermione felt her breath hitch at the look Fleur was giving her and she was suddenly very aware of their very compromising position. "And how do you know I'm worth waiting for?"

"What kind of question ees zat?" Fleur scoffed. "You are eveyzing I 'ave ever wanted. I was willing to fight all of ze 'ogwarts students because I zought someone else 'ad touched you."

"No, you weren't."

"Oh, yes I was." Fleur nodded her head. "Because you are mine 'Ermione Granger." She purred before she captured the prefects lips in a soft kiss that sucked the air right out of Hermione's lungs, making her dizzy in the most heavenly way only Fleur Delacour was capable of achieving and in that moment it was clear as day that she really did belong to the gorgeous angel above her.


	24. Mine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the music in this chapter I started with Bad Romance, but covered by Halestorm (shoutout to my fiance for dealing with me dancing and singing in the car to it like a maniac and yes I know all the moves from Bad Romance. I fucking love Lady Gaga XD)and then for the library part I was listening to Do It All The Time by I Don't Know How But They Found Me (super fits the library scene) and then randomly The Hearse by Matt Maeson. Don't know why the chill sad song inspired the ending but oh well. I do not question the creative gods haha

"Bloody hell Hermione." Harry groaned as he picked himself up from the ground a lot slower this time than the last while the brunette stood twirling her wand with a smirk. "Your dueling has gotten even better since the last time we did this. I can't seem to catch a break."

"Well, maybe if you had been practicing for your last task instead of mucking around with Ron playing quidditch you wouldn't be so rusty." She scoffed.

"Oi!" Ron cried out around a mouthful of food from the log where he sat. "We weren't . . . mucking around."

Hermione arched an eyebrow looking to the red-head. "Oh? What would you call it Ronald?"

"Practice." He puffed out his chest, making Hermione roll her eyes.

"You guys tired of getting whooped by Hermione yet?" Ginny laughed when she took in the disheveled appearance of Harry as she approached the group.

"I'm not getting whooped." Ron scoffed.

"That's because you've been busy stuffing your face and haven't done a single duel." Hermione shot back, making Ron smile sheepishly at her.

"Well, seeing as Harry looks beat, I'll take a crack at you Mione." Ginny smiled menacingly as she grabbed her wand.

"I zink I might be a better challenge." Came the silky voice of Fleur Delacour with a disgruntled looking Veronique in tow.

"I zought we were going to 'ead to 'Ogsmead to shop." Veronique scowled over at the blonde. Hermione and Fleur had been together for a couple weeks now, much longer than Veronique thought they would be, but Fleur was clinging to this fantasy like a dog with a bone and it was starting to get on her last nerve; she barely got any time with her anymore and here she was blowing her off once again.

"Oh, well I wouldn't want to interrupt your shopping trip." Hermione tried to smile pleasantly over at the raven-haired girl, but she only received an eyeroll, leaving her perplexed as usual when it came to the girl who seemed to be attached at the hip with Fleur.

Fleur waved off Hermione's concern, making Veronique's scowl deepen. "Eet can wait. We 'ardly need more cloze and zis looks far more entertaining." She grinned as she eyed the dirtied boy who lived; Hermione had obviously given the poor boy a good thrashing.

"It's not entertaining when you're on the receiving end of her spells." Harry grumbled as he rubbed his sore shoulder.

"I zink I can 'andle 'er." Fleur replied cheekily with a wink in her girlfriend's direction that made her companion inwardly cringe.

"I believe I won our last duel."

"Oh?" Fleur asked with a smirk. "Since when ees tying winning Mademoiselle Granger?"

Hermione looked at her nails, pretending to be bored to egg on the champion as she replied, "I wasn't aware you considered Sirius jumping in to help you a tie."

"'Elp moi!?" Fleur asked incredulously, the veela inside of her stirring excitedly at the challenge being presented. "C'est ridicule! Ze only one zat will need saving ees you chérie."

" _ **Should you really be dueling in front of your competition and revealing your technique?"**_ Veronique asked in their native tongue, eyeing the messy haired boy with her arms crossed.

" _ **I'm not worried about it."**_ Fleur smiled confidently. " _ **This will only take a moment."**_

" _ **Is that what you tell all the boys and girls?"**_ Hermione teased the blonde, leaving Fleur's jaw to drop at the lewd joke she never expected to come from Hermione Granger while Veronique had to hide a snicker at the joke made at her friend's expense.

" _ **It definitely takes a lot longer than a moment with Fleur."**_ Veronique mumbled, but the comment still made the brunette's ears perk. Bright amber eyes shifted from Veronique to Fleur with a confused glint while the blonde gave the wicked witch a menacing look. " _ **Oh, calm down. You know I'm kidding."**_ She scoffed.

"What?" Ginny asked with a tilt of her head, clearly confused as to what was happening since no one was using English.

"Veronique and 'Ermione are just making fun of me." Fleur grumbled as she pulled out her wand, aiming it at her girlfriend who was still caught a little off guard by the comment made so brazenly in front of her, but she supposed there was a bit of a cultural difference.

"Care to share the joke?" Ginny asked with a raised eyebrow, amusement twinkling in her green eyes.

"It wasn't that funny." Hermione shrugged as she eyed Veronique casually walking to where Ron and Harry sat, distastefully looking down at the log before carefully sitting down on it.

"Alright then, keep your secrets." Ginny grinned, looking between her and Fleur, but when she saw them readying their wands and approaching each other she quickly got out of the way.

"No cheap tricks this time." Hermione spoke as they grew closer, giving the veela a pointed look.

"Moi?" Fleur held her hand to her chest in mock shock. "I can't believe you would zink I would do such a zing."

"Uh-huh." Hermione rolled her eyes and smiled at her girlfriends antics.

"No zrowing zings zis time zough." Fleur pointed her wand at Hermione accusingly. "You almost took my 'ead off last time."

The two girls could hear Ginny boo in the background at the rule and let out a little laugh at the red-head's outrage. "Alright. Deal."

"I must warn you zough . . ." Fleur smiled as she grabbed the necklace around Hermione's neck she gave her when she was finally in arms reach of the brunette and pulled her in so they were just an inch apart. "I will not be as gentle wiz you zis time, especially after zat remark."

"Oooh, I'm shaking in my boots." Hermione smirked back confidently, making the veela's eyes subtly glow at how self-assured her girlfriend is and how comfortable she had grown with the blonde to not blush at their proximity or her provocative words.

"You will regret saying zat." Fleur replied softly, her eyes flickering down to those cherry red lips quirked up at the corner. "And for ze record . . ." She took a strand of Hermione's hair, tucking it behind her ear, and leaning in so her lips were hovering close enough to the golden girl's ear to brush it as she spoke. "I only need but one moment to leave you satisfied chérie, but as for moi . . . I'll need far more zan zat to satiate my zirst."

Hermione felt her cheeks light up and shivers run now her spine while goosebumps erupted all over her skin at the implications her girlfriend was making and the hot breath hitting her skin.

" _ **Are you two going to duel or fuck?"**_ Came Veronique's impatient voice from across the way, making the two girls pull apart.

Fleur sent her irritating friend a scowl while Hermione took a step back, holding up her wand to her face to start the match before the champion mirrored her and they both walked ten paces. When they turned back around they both held their wands at the ready, but neither made a move to cast a spell, both waiting for the other to make the first move.

"Kick her ass Mione!" Ginny yelled out.

"Yeah, get her Mione!" Ron cheered, making the brunette laugh and shake her head at her friend's antics, but that provided the opening Fleur needed.

The veela cast a quick silent spell that Hermione saw at the last minute, barely deflecting it with a flick of her wrist, raising her eyebrow at the smirking blonde. "I thought we said no dirty tricks."

"Zat was not a dirty trick Mademoiselle Granger. Eets not my fault you were distracted."

"Alright, if that's the way you want to play it then fine." Hermione grinned before sending off a rapid succession of her own silent spells that Fleur easily deflected, shooting off her own any time she had a second of reprieve.

Fleur cast a particularly strong spell, but when deflected by Hermione it went shooting at the unlikely trio watching. Veronique ducked quickly, barely avoiding the deadly spell, leaving it to collide with the ground behind her, causing a small explosion. "Merde! What spells are you using!?" She growled, glaring at the dueling girls when she straightened out.

"They're mental, those two." Ron spoke with wide eyes while Hermione tightened her grip on her wand; it would seem Fleur really wasn't messing around this time.

Deciding to take a different tactic since her current one wasn't working too well Hermione shot off her own explosive spell, but it landed a mere inch in front of Fleur's foot, making the veela jump back and then she did another and another, pushing the blonde further and further back until the back of her heel collided with a rock protruding from the ground, causing the champion to lose her footing and stumble backwards.

Fleur's icy blue eyes widened when she realized mid-fall what Hermione had been trying to do and cursed herself for not realizing what her brilliant girlfriend had been up to; she knew too well Hermione's aim was deadly so a missed spell was never an accident when it came to the Gryffindor. Before she could further chide herself for her foolish mistake another spell came whirring at her head, leaving her barely any time to roll out of the way.

The veela had to be quick getting back to her feet, because any slight disadvantage against Hermione Granger could prove fatal. That point was proved when Hermione mercilessly threw spell after spell at her while she righted herself, leaving her to sloppily deflect the barrage of lights being shot at her. When Hermione showed no sign of stopping she gritted her teeth, hating that she was going to reveal one of her own personal spells in front of her competition, but her fiery girlfriend was leaving her with no choice.

With a quick intricate wave of her wand five red lights shot out at once at Hermione spread out in a way that it would be hard to deflect all of them, but Fleur knew that only one of them was the one that needed deflecting.

Hermione's eyes widened when she saw that many beams come off of the veela's wand with just one spell and was left to make a quick decision. There was no way all of them could be deadly, but which one was the one she needed to avoid? There was no way to tell so Hermione deflected one before she dived out of the way of the others, landing on the ground with a soft oof.

When she looked back up she saw the same spell being casted at her and had to roll several times to avoid contact with the unfamiliar spell. She was in a bad spot, things definitely weren't looking good for the war hero, but a golden opportunity presented itself when Hermione saw Fleur's location. She quickly shot out a spell above the blonde, praying for her aim to stay true.

Fleur narrowed her eyes when she saw the spell whiz above her head. She heard the telltale sound of wood cracking and looked up to see the medium sized branch starting to fall down, leaving her only option to stumble back and fall to the ground while the branch landed not one foot in front of her. When she looked up with her wand raised she was disarmed, her wand flying too far away for her to reach and Hermione Granger was standing over her breathing heavily.

"Looks like I won . . . again." She grinned through pants.

Fleur scowled up at the brunette and before Hermione knew what was happening Fleur hooked her leg between hers and twisted, bringing the golden girl toppling to the ground while she rolled over so her girlfriend was pinned beneath her. "Looks like you spoke too soon . . . again." Fleur smiled cheekily down at the shocked prefect.

"I wouldn't call this winning." Hermione scoffed while Fleur raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow.

"Hmmm . . . I 'ave you pinned and breazless . . . " Fleur purred, her eyes glowing a soft neon blue when Hermione bit her lower lip, looking up at Fleur with flushed cheeks and golden eyes that reflected her own desire. "I would definitely call zis winning." Fleur finished softly as she started to lean down to capture her girlfriend's lips in a kiss, but a cough in the background broke their intimate moment and made her pause with a growl and sharp glare in the intruder's direction.

"Don't mind us." Veronique grumbled as she crossed her arms, glaring at the two disheveled girls on the ground obviously having a moment. "By all means, continue to zrow yourself at each ozer een front of everyone s'il vous plaît."

Fleur hardened her look at the raven-haired girl before turning back to the girl trapped beneath her, looking at the prefect longingly for a moment before letting out a disappointed sigh and lifting herself from the ground, offering her hand to Hermione to help her up as well which the Gryffindor gratefully accepted.

"So, who bloody won?" Harry asked with a laugh when he took in the two blushing girls' appearance.

"Hermione obviously." Ron spoke with a proud smile, making Ginny roll her eyes.

"Obviously you did not see ze end result." Veronique scoffed. "Fleur won."

"What!?" Ron cried out. "Are you bloody bonkers? Mione had her disarmed!"

Veronique shrugged. "Fleur did not concede and disarmed 'Ermione. She ees clearly ze victor as expected."

"As expected?" Ron growled, but Ginny cut in before her brother got too hot headed over a silly competition.

"How 'bout we call it a tie?"

Hermione smiled gratefully at the youngest Weasley for ending the petty argument. "That's fine with me."

"Hmmm, I may disagree chérie." Fleur grinned over at the brunette. "Per'aps after my shopping trip we can settle ze score?"

Hermione couldn't help but laugh at her girlfriend's continued persistence in getting alone time with her; she really was insatiable. "I'll think about it."

Fleur pouted at the response and was about to push further, but a firm grip on her arm pulled her from the group. "Come on. We need to get zere before ze streets are littered wiz zose 'Ogwarts students."

Fleur sighed as she was literally dragged away from her girlfriend and friends, waving goodbye with a dopey smile at the prefect who returned the smile in kind, waving back. "Zis eesn't over Mademoiselle Granger!" Fleur yelled out, making Hermione laugh. "I expect you een my room to zoroughly discuss zis later."

Hermione shrugged in response. "I'll have to check my schedule."

The pout returned to Fleur's face when she still couldn't get a definite answer from the golden girl, but a laughing Ginny Weasley brought the smile back when she answered for her friend. "You know she'll bloody be there."

/

" _ **I see Hermione Granger still hasn't put out for you."**_ Veronique grumbled as they entered Fleur's room after their quiet shopping trip, looking through the clothing she purchased while Fleur glared at her.

" _ **And what makes you say that?"**_

Veronique rolled her emerald eyes at the question. " _ **Because I can practically feel the sexual frustration rolling off of you in waves."**_

" _ **I have no idea what you're talking about."**_ Fleur mumbled as she looked down at her desk.

" _ **You know I can take care of that for you."**_ Veronique smirked, making the blonde scowl.

" _ **Why do you keep saying that? You know, I thought you would be happy for me, but you've just been bitchy**_ _about_ _ **the whole thing. I love her and I'm willing to wait for her, but you keep making lewd comments to make her uncomfortable and hinting at things she doesn't need to know about."**_

" _ **You're ashamed of me?"**_ Veronique put her hand to her chest in mock hurt, trying to make a joke of it when in reality the comment really did sting. Her and Fleur had been fooling around for a long time and this sudden lack of interest in her was a big blow to her ego.

" _ **You make it sound as if we were lovers when she is around."**_ Fleur grumbled as she plopped down onto her bed. " _ **You know that isn't the case and I don't need you fucking this up for me."**_

" _ **I'm fucking it up for you?"**_ Veronique laughed. " _ **That's rich. It's not my fault if little miss perfect can't take a joke and it most certainly isn't my fault . . ."**_ Veronique took it upon herself to straddle the disgruntled veela, running her hands up her arms before resting them on her shoulders with a smirk. " _ **If she can't satisfy you like I can."**_

" _ **It's not funny Veronique."**_ Fleur growled as she grabbed the raven-haired girl by the waist. " _ **Knock it off. I mean it."**_ Fleur emphasized her point by lifting the other girl off of her and pushing her to the side, earning her a hard glare from her friend.

" _ **You're serious about this whole thing? Are you kidding me?"**_ Veronique raised her voice, standing up from the bed and standing over the irritated blonde. " _ **Ever since you met Hermione Granger you've become someone else entirely. I feel like I don't know you anymore."**_

" _ **Well maybe I want to change for the better and stop using people like objects!"**_ Fleur shot back as she jumped to her feet. " _ **I want to be better . . ."**_ Fleur looked down, biting her lower lip. " _ **For her . . for everyone really."**_

Veronique had to refrain from gagging at the sentiment. " _ **How sweet."**_

Fleur's gaze turned icy as she stared down the other girl. " _ **Why do you have a problem with this?"**_

" _ **I don't."**_ Veronique shrugged. " _ **I just think it's a load of bullshit. No one ever really changes Fleur. Once you're done with this girl you will understand."**_ She sighed.

Fleur felt herself heat up at her friends words; she was changing, trying to become a better person, but Veronique, someone she considered to be her best friend, just wouldn't get behind her on it and it hurt and disappointed her in so many different ways. " _ **Fuck off."**_ Fleur mumbled with less venom than she had hoped would come out before she stormed out of her room, leaving the raven-haired girl alone with her thoughts.

' _This is so stupid.'_ Veronique inwardly groaned to herself, hating how things were coming between her and Fleur. ' _This girl is ruining everything and she just won't let up.'_ She thought darkly to herself as her eyes wandered Fleur's room only to land on the journal that Fleur loved oh so much lying on her desk.

With her interest thoroughly peaked Veronique made her way to the desk, carefully looking to the door in case Fleur came back and picked up the journal. She was surprised that the locking charm wasn't in place; Fleur really was starting to get sloppy. As she opened it up she scowled when she realized the blonde hadn't been as careless as she hoped and saw the words mixed into a jumble that made no sense and she had no knowledge of a spell to fix it so she flipped the pages until she came upon an image that couldn't be mixed up with a spell of Hermione Granger studying on Fleur's bed and then she flipped the page again to see yet another drawing of the brunette lounging on a rock at what seemed to be a lake. She felt a fire rise into her chest at the pictures that Fleur had so lovingly drawn, showing her admiration for the golden girl's curves, her hair, and her eyes so clearly defined. Everything in her wanted to shred the pictures up, but that would just further displease Fleur and that wouldn't do so she settled on closing the journal before slamming it back onto her desk and making a beeline for the castle.

/

Hermione sat in the library, flipping through some pages on French culture, hoping to get a better grasp on the interactions between Fleur and Veronique. If she just went by what she already knew she would think the two were dating or had at one point and that unsettled her greatly. She didn't want to approach the blonde about it yet, too scared of the reaction she might get or having her fears confirmed; she couldn't decide which was making her stay silent so settled on the one place that always gave her solace.

Unfortunately, she found nothing and was now diving into the book she had checked out ages ago, but didn't have too much time to read about veela, finding a chapter about mates particularly interesting. She was so immersed in the book she didn't hear the clicking of heals or notice a person had taken the seat next to her until a soft hand touched her bare knee making her jump.

She had expected to see Fleur, but instead she was face to face with Veronique with a dangerous twinkle in those dark eyes that reminded her of the forbidden forest at night.

"Je suis desole. I did not mean to startle you." Veronique's smile was supposed to appear flirty, but it reminded Hermione more of a wolf showing its teeth to its prey.

"I-it's fine." Hermione stuttered as she subtly scooted away a bit to give herself some space from the other girl. "What brings you to the library?"

"Oh, zis and zat." Veronique flicked her hand from left to right to emphasize her point.

"I see." Hermione nodded as she looked back down at her book, blushing when she realized it was fairly obvious it was about veela. She quickly closed it and put it in her bag before the other girl could see that she was doing research on her friend and was almost relieved when she realized Veronique had no interest in what she was reading, but that feeling of relief vanished when she realized it was her she was staring at so intensely.

"Actually . . ." Veronique bit her lower lip. "Eef I am being completely 'onest I came to see you."

Hermione furrowed her brow, trying to push down her feeling of unease. "Is there something I can help you with?"

Dark green eyes raked up and down Hermione's form at the question, making the prefect shift uncomfortably in seat. "Per'aps."

"What is it?"

"I came to apologize." She sighed, grabbing Hermione's hand. "I 'ave acted awful towards you and eets not okay."

"I-it's fine." Hermione stuttered nervously; she had no idea where this girl was going with this.

"Non, eet's not 'Ermione." Veronique looked down before lifting her gaze to startled amber. "I 'ave acted so 'orrid because . . . well . . ." She let out a sigh and closed her eyes. "I'm jealous."

Hermione felt a little sick when she realized the implications that Veronique was jealous because she was with Fleur who could very well be a past lover. "Jealous?"

"Oui." She nodded her head, looking off to the side before bringing her gaze back to the golden girl. "I asked you to ze dance and zat Bulgarian got to take you and now Fleur ees dating you. Eet seems I keep missing my chance."

Hermione's eyes widened at the confession, pulling her hand out of Veronique's grasp when she realized what she was saying. "You're Fleur's best friend."

"Zat ees what makes zis so unfair." She grumbled, inwardly irked that Hermione pulled away from her and her charms she thought no one could resist. "I would just 'ate myself eef I didn't at least try to snag a date wiz you."

Hermione now looked completely mortified at her proposal. "I'm dating Fleur."

"Oui, but eet obviously ees not too serious non?" She tilted her head to the side, looking at the skeptical prefect. "I mean you 'ave yet to even go on a date wiz 'er and ze term ees ending soon. We will be going back 'ome and I doubt you will be moving to France or 'er to England and let's be 'onest, Fleur ees very . . ." Veronique pretended to struggle with the right word to use as she tried to hide her smile at the look on Hermione's face. "Experienced and eet ees fine zat you are not, but 'ow long before she gets bored?"

"Fleur's not like that." Hermione growled as she stood up, clenching her hands into a tight fist despite the ache in her chest at the thought of Fleur growing bored with her or never seeing her again once the term was over; she hadn't even thought of that yet.

"I mean no offense." Veronique held up her hands to show her innocence. "I love Fleur, she ees my best friend and I only wish ze best for 'er. I just 'ad to try." She smiled as she stood up. "You are just very . . ." Veronique sighed as she ran her hands up Hermione's arms the same way she did with Fleur and rested them on the golden girl's shoulders. "Special."

"Well as flattered as I am." Hermione grumbled as she carefully disentangled herself from Veronique. "I am very much in love with Fleur and have zero interest in anyone else. Sorry."

"Hmmmm, my loss again zen." Veronique hummed, not making a move to get out of Hermione's personal space, but instead dropping to her knees in front of the startled prodigy.

"What-"

"Your shoe ees untied." Veronique looked up at the brunette with heavily lidded eyes, biting her lower lip as Hermione looked down with a bright blush. "I wouldn't want you to get 'urt Mademoiselle Granger." Veronique emphasized her point by tugging the laces hard, making the brunette lose her balance for a second, but regained it by placing her hand on the raven-haired girl's shoulder. "Will you promise me somezing?" Veronique spoke softly, giving the appearance of vulnerability to the very confused Gryffindor.

"What is it?"

"Please don't tell Fleur." She looked up pleadingly. "I know I should 'ave kept my mouz shut, but . . ." She sighed as she stood up, coming face to face with Hermione Granger once more, but this time so close they were mere inches apart. "I just couldn't 'elp myself."

"F-fine." Hermione mumbled as she took a step back. "But all this." Hermione pointed to Veronique and the whole situation they found themselves in. "Stops."

"Of course." Veronique smiled. "You are too kind 'Ermione." She kissed the prodigy on the cheek, giving her a wink before she breezed out of the library, leaving Hermione clearly confused. She had had two hopeful outcomes of the encounter; one Hermione Granger giving into her charms which she was already sure was unlikely to happen, but she needed to try nonetheless. The second, the one that she knew would stick with the golden girl was the seed of doubt she planted in her mind. She knew for a fact Fleur had never been on a date and the brunette even approaching the subject would terrify the veela when she realized how real her situation was. It was only a matter of time before Fleur came crawling back to her and there was no way Hermione Granger was going to rat her out. She really meant her last statement, she was too kind and it would be her downfall.

/

A little after Veronique left Hermione made her way down to the carriage, chewing on her lower lip nervously; the flirtatious foreigner's words were really bothering her. She and Fleur really hadn't gone on a date yet, it had been nothing but stolen kisses between classes and clandestine meetings without any real semblance of a relationship. Yes, they had said I love you, but how serious could it really be if they weren't doing these things? And what if she was taking too long to finally have sex with Fleur? What if the champion grew bored of her? The raven-haired girl was her best friend and had known the beautiful veela for much longer so where did that leave her?

She was so lost in thought she didn't even realize she had walked into Fleur's room; it only registered in her mind that she had when Fleur's gaze snapped up from her journal she was writing in. She noticed amber eyes locked on her prized possession and quickly snapped it shut with a blush, making the brunette furrow her brows.

"I was wondering when you would come." Fleur grinned, trying to bring her girlfriend's attention back to her.

"Sorry, I got a bit sidetracked." Hermione smiled back, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Ees somezing wrong ma belle?" Fleur asked with a frown as she got up and approached the dazed Gryffindor.

"N-no." Hermione quickly shook her head, trying to appear alright, but the veela could see right through her. "Everything is-" Fleur cut off the bookworm before another lie could leave her mouth with a soft but firm kiss that made the prefect lose all train of thought. "Fine . . ." Hermione breathed out dreamily when Fleur pulled away.

"Clearly zere ees somezing going on een zat 'ead of yours." Fleur smiled. "What ees eet?"

"I well . . ." Hermione chewed on her lower lip, looking down at the ground before lifting her gaze to arctic blue. "Do you want to go on a date . . . with me?"

Fleur looked taken aback by the random question; she really had never been on a date so this whole thing was new and foreign to her. For a brief moment a horrible feeling of dread washed over her, but then she saw the vulnerability shining in those golden eyes and it disappeared as fast as it had appeared. "'Ow could I possibly say no to ma belle?" She spoke with a sigh as she moved a strand of Hermione's hair behind her ear.

"But do you want to?" Hermione pushed.

Fleur furrowed her brow in confusion; something was definitely up. "Of course. Why wouldn't I?"

"I-it's nothing." Hermione shook her head as she took a step back, but Fleur was not going to let this go.

"Clearly eet ees somezing . . ."

"I promised I wouldn't say anything." Hermione sighed as she leaned back against the wall.

"Well you are wiz me now soooo anyzing you get told ees of course going to come back to moi." Fleur grinned. "What ees eet?"

"Do you promise you won't get mad?" Hermione asked nervously. She definitely wasn't Veronique's biggest fan, but she would hate to get in the middle of their friendship no matter how weird it seemed to be.

"Just tell me."

"I um . . ." Nervous amber shifted to the side before locking with silvery blue probing for answers. "I had a little chat with Veronique in the library."

Fleur immediately stiffened at the mention of the raven-haired girl. "Oh?"

"She um . . . kind of tried to ask me on a date and then implied that you maybe didn't take this relationship seriously and you were growing bored with me . . ."

"Zat ees ridicule!" Fleur growled, anger coursing through her veins. "What did she do 'Ermione? Did she touch you?"

"I-I mean-"

Hermione didn't need to finish her sentence for Fleur to know that Veronique had. " _ **That dirty little bitch."**_ Fleur slipped into her native tongue as she felt a horrible rage grip her that she wasn't entirely sure was completely her own; the veela in her had a nasty way of taking her emotions and amplifying them. That didn't matter though, because this was it, the last straw for Fleur. Veronique had completely crossed the line. She knew how she felt for the war hero, but had done something so underhanded anyways in hopes of proving a point that she knew to be false. " _ **I'm going to kill her."**_

Fleur went to storm out and beat the wicked witch senseless for her betrayal, but a sharp tug on her wrist whipped her back around and soft lips made any thoughts of leaving slip from her mind. "It's not worth it." Hermione sighed as she pulled back, placing a hand on the blonde's cheek to calm and soothe her.

"Not worz eet?" Fleur asked with a scowl, leaving Hermione perplexed. "You are definitely worz eet. She crossed ze line when she zought she could touch what ees mine."

"Yours?" Hermione asked with a raised eyebrow. She knew Fleur had said she was hers before, but she didn't think the veela really saw her as a possession until maybe now. "I was unaware that I am your property."

"Kiss me." Fleur spoke with a firm voice and a fire burning in those neon eyes.

Hermione scowled at the command. "Excuse me?"

Fleur let out a sigh before she leaned forward, crashing her lips against Hermione's in a hungry deep kiss that made the prodigy's heart feel as if it was going to pound out of her chest. The stubborn part of her wanted to push the blonde away, but every other part of her was alight with desire as a gnawing feeling of need filled her.

Her knees felt weak as she buried her hands in impossibly soft blonde locks, pulling the veela closer as her resolve snapped in half and she kissed back with just as much intensity as her girlfriend poured in. The feeling of a soft brush of Fleur's tongue against her lips and two deceivingly strong hands gripping her hips was enough to make her knees actually buckle, but a second later those same hands gripped her by the back of her thighs and lifted her up before slamming her against the wall.

The rough ministrations of her girlfriend were enough to drive Hermione crazy as an instinct she didn't even know she possessed took over and she wrapped her legs around her girlfriend's waist, wanting to be as close to the passionate champion as possible.

Fleur seemed to more than approve of this action as she let out a hum of appreciation and slipped her tongue in the prodigy's mouth for only a moment before pulling away with a pounding heart and a heaving chest. "Now tell me . . ." She spoke breathlessly as Hermione looked at her with glazed over amber eyes and licked her lips, relishing in the taste of vanilla. That action alone was enough to drive the veela mad, but she fought every urge in her to capture that sweet mouth again in another heated kiss for the sake of proving her point. "Zat you were not made for me and I for you."

"I . . ." Hermione was at a loss for words, her brain was scrambled from the steamy kiss and being pressed against the wall with her girlfriend holding her up and pressing insistently against her was not helping matters.

"Tell me." Fleur pushed further into the brunette, making golden eyes roll into the back of her head at how good it felt to have the veela pressing against her.

"Fleur . . ." Hermione tried to gather her wits, but the task was impossible with their proximity.

Fleur's hot mouth returned to her lips before she could really formulate a response, sucking any will she had left out of her lungs with her probing tongue and possessive grip. Hermione never fancied herself to be the kind of girl that would enjoy this type of attention, but she had been oh so very wrong. She knew if she died in this moment she would be perfectly content, because as sinful as Fleur's touch was, this was definitely heaven.

Hermione had to bite her lower lip to repress a moan when Fleur's magical lips found their way to her neck and started sucking on her pulse point in a way that would surely leave a mark. Hermione Granger was hers and she wanted everyone to know.

"Tell me 'Ermione . . ." Fleur spoke huskily, her swollen lips dragging against the prefect's soft skin. _**"Tell me you're mine."**_

Hermione squirmed against the blonde when that velvety foreign language drifted into her ears, too lost in the feeling of her girlfriend to properly respond, but a bite to her neck definitely got her attention and made her hiss in pleasure and pain. "I'm yours Fleur." She got out between pants. "Entirely yours."

Fleur smiled into Hermione's neck at the admission, her teeth scraping the sensitive flesh as she spoke. "Always?"

Hermione just dumbly nodded her head as Fleur's mouth moved down to her collar bone. "Always."

The veela in Fleur was practically purring at the golden girl's submission and the heat radiating off of her, showing her obvious need for the blonde. She was in a frenzy just hearing those words slip from Hermione Granger's mouth so easily and every fiber of her being wanted to seal those words with a promise only her body could make. She could feel the anticipation rise in her chest as she slid one hand from Hermione's outer thigh, mainly holding up her weight with her body at this point, and ghosted her fingertips up the prodigy's toned inner thigh, a trail of goosebumps following close behind her fingers as she grew closer and closer to her goal.

Hermione felt as if her skin was on fire from the contact even though her body shivered, contradicting its temperature when she felt that soft hand slide up her leg. She was in a daze and at Fleur's mercy, but she was snapped back to reality when the blonde's fingertips brushed the edge of her underwear, making her jump a bit at the unfamiliar contact. "F-Fleur."

The sound of trepidation in Hermione's voice was enough to snap the veela out of her own lustful daze, making her pause her ministrations and be brought back to the present. "Je suis désolé 'Ermione." Fleur blushed as she gently let the golden girl down and took a step back. "I did not mean to push you. Ze veela just kind of took over and eet got kind of 'azy."

"I-it's fine." Hermione blushed a much deeper shade of red as she straightened out her clothing. "I was just surprised is all."

"I will not surprise you like zat again." Fleur sighed, slightly ashamed that she had let her instincts take over like that. "I will make sure to keep zis damned zing een line."

"Is it difficult?" Hermione asked, biting her lower lip as she looked at the blonde.

"Ees what difficult?"

"Keeping the veea at bay?"

"Sometimes." Fleur smiled shyly at the war hero. "Eet only gets 'ard to control eet when I get really upset or . . . ." She cleared her throat, her cheeks heating up once more. "Excited and unfortunately I was boz zose zings just now. I promise I will be better wiz eet. Ze last zing I want ees for you to feel pressured ma belle."

"I don't feel pressured by you." Hermione smiled as she grabbed Fleur's hand to give it a reassuring squeeze. "I understand. Really."

"'Ow did I ever get so lucky?" Fleur sighed, feeling relieved her girlfriend wasn't upset with her after her rough handling.

"Hmmmm, . . ." Hermione hummed. "Persistence definitely played a part."

"Well you know what zey say." Fleur smirked as she pulled Hermione in closer, placing a chase kiss on those cherry lips. "Patience, persistence, and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success."

Hermione just rolled her eyes with a smile at the blonde's flared up ego. ' _Cocky git.'_

"Now, about zis date." Fleur stepped back with a grin. "When shall I expect eet?"

"You really want to go on a date with me?" Hermione blushed.

"'Ermione, I zink we skipped ze date part and went much furzer so oui, I zink eet ees time we went on a much overdue date, because I do take zis very seriously." Fleur was secretly proud of herself for not feeling even the slightest bit of fear in doing this with Hermione now. Sure, she felt that horrible dread when Hermione first brought it up, but now that she was thinking about it she was actually . . . excited.

Hermione's face lit up when she saw Fleur really did want to do this with her. "How about this weekend?"

"Parfait."


	25. Always

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual I will let you all know the songs that helped me write this. In the beginning there weren't really any but near the middle and end the song No Angels by Bastille and Mr Sandman covered by SYML fit everything perfectly :) I do so hope you all enjoy the chapter. I personally, will probably never be happy with it, but what can you do? haha

_Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream_  
_Make her the cutest that I've ever seen_  
_Give her two lips, like roses and clover_  
_And tell her that her lonely nights are over_

_Sandman, I'm so alone_  
_Don't have nobody to call my own_  
_Please turn on your magic beam_  
_Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream_

_-SYML cover_

After thoroughly snogging her girlfriend for a couple hours Hermione made her departure from the Beuxbatons carriage, making the blonde promise to not do anything brash to which Fleur agreed, but the second the brunette was out of sight her smile shifted to a menacing scowl. Veronique was going to pay for meddling with her relationship and touching HER girlfriend.

She stalked the halls of the carriage, her veela still demanding blood for the betrayal of someone she thought she could trust, someone who she thought was her friend. She grew frustrated when the mischievous witch wasn't in her room, but her ears perked when she heard the familiar laughter of the raven-haired girl coming from further down the carriage. She made a beeline for the sound she found coming from the library where Odette looked mildly annoyed while Veronique rambled on.

The second she walked in Odette could feel the air shift and looked up with worried eyes when she saw her alpha approaching with a horrible blood lust emanating from every pore. _**"Fleur, what is-?"**_

" _ **Veronique."**_ Fleur spoke calmly, but Odette knew she was anything but.

" _ **Yes?"**_ The dark-haired girl turned with an oblivious smile, batting her eyelashes at the blonde. " _ **Is there something you need my help with?"**_ She winked at the furious veela, unaware that she was further provoking her.

" _ **Was it worth it?"**_

Veronique furrowed her brow in confusion. _**"Was what worth it?"**_

Without any warning Fleur grabbed her by the front of her uniform and threw her to the ground.

" _ **Fleur!"**_ Odette stood up at the unexpected action.

Fleur towered over the other girl, placing her knee on her stomach to keep her in place as she gritted her teeth and kept a firm grip on the clothing. " _ **Was coming on to MY girlfriend and fucking with her head worth ruining our friendship? Was it worth getting your ass beat over?"**_

" _ **She's lying."**_ Veronique spat angrily; she underestimated Hermione Granger, she really didn't think she would say anything to Fleur.

" _ **I never said she told me."**_ Fleur growled, her eyes glowing a frightening neon blue.

' _Great, I might as well have just outright admitted it.'_ Veronique inwardly chided herself, but there was no going back now. " _ **She came on to me."**_

" _ **Lying bitch!"**_ Fleur shouted as she lifted her fist to punch her once best friend in the face, but Odette was quick to grab her from behind, desperately trying to pull her away.

" _ **Fleur! Stop!"**_ Came Gabrielle's voice as she came rushing in. She felt something horrible take over her from across the carriage and came running the second she realized it was her sister's emotions she was feeling. She helped her girlfriend drag the enraged alpha away from the raven-haired girl; she held no love for the girl, but she didn't want to see her sister get into any more trouble.

" _ **Get your hands off me!"**_ Fleur yelled as she furiously fought against their hold.

" _ **You're over-reacting!"**_ Veronique yelled back as she stood back up, glaring at the defiant blonde. " _ **Little miss goodie two shoes is just sensitive and sickeningly insecure. I was doing you a favor."**_

" _ **Don't ever do me any favors again then."**_ Fleur spat out. " _ **You're supposed to be my friend and you betrayed me. I never want to see your face again. You're dead to me!"**_

The veela's harsh words hit Veronique hard; she felt as if someone had just thrust their hand into her chest and was painfully squeezing her heart. " _ **F-Fleur . . . You don't mean that."**_

" _ **Oh, I've never meant anything more in my life."**_ She growled, still attempting to free herself. " _ **Let me go!"**_ She turned her glare to her sister and Odette, struggling to keep her at bay. " _ **I won't do anything."**_

" _ **I don't believe you."**_ Gabrielle spoke with narrowed eyes that just made Fleur's glow brighter.

" _ **As your alpha I command you."**_

" _ **Fleur, come on. . ."**_ Veronique took a step forward which proved to be a mistake, because Fleur almost escaped and barely missed grabbing her uniform once more. " _ **I'm your best friend!"**_

" _ **No decent person would do this to their best friend. You're poison!"**_ Fleur spat out as she continued to fight against the two other veela. _ **"And if you so much as breathe in Hermione's direction, I'll kill you!"**_

" _ **Fleur!"**_ Gabrielle was completely shocked; she had never seen her sister this riled up, especially when it came to Veronique.

" _ **You don't mean any of this."**_ Veronique replied with a stony face, trying to hide the pain ripping her apart; a punch would have hurt a lot less. " _ **I'll talk to you when you're more reasonable."**_ She put her nose up in the air, breezing past the trio and the group of onlookers that formed when they heard the loud commotion, trying to look unaffected by the entire incident.

" _ **Stay the fuck away from me and Hermione!"**_ Fleur yelled loud enough for Veronique to hear down the hallway. " _ **What are you all staring at!?"**_ She barked out, making the group of students jump and scurry away before they themselves faced the wrath of a pissed off veela.

" _ **Fleur, please stop this."**_ Odette pleaded with the blonde who still struggled against her hold even though the wicked witch was already long gone. " _ **You're losing control. Please, you have to calm down."**_

Fleur stopped her movement when she heard the red-head's words, her chest heaving as adrenaline still coursed through her veins, her veela thoroughly displeased the traitor escaped her grasp.

" _ **Take calming breaths."**_ Gabrielle spoke softly, relieved she didn't have to fight for control anymore. " _ **She's gone and it's over."**_

Fleur remained silent as she listened to her sister's advice and proceeded to take deep breaths in through her nose and exhaled out of her mouth until she felt herself relax and calm down. " _ **I'm sorry you had to see that . . ."**_ Fleur sighed and the two girls finally let her go. " _ **But I'm not sorry for what I said to her."**_ She grumbled. " _ **The only thing I'm sorry for when it comes to her is not getting my hands on her before you stopped me."**_

Odette furrowed her brow as her alpha took a seat. " _ **What happened?"**_

" _ **She came on to Hermione."**_ Fleur growled, her veela bristling at just the thought all over again. " _ **Then proceeded to make her think I wasn't serious about our relationship and told her I would grow bored of her."**_

" _ **I wish I could say I'm surprised."**_ Gabrielle mumbled as she took a seat next to her sister. " _ **And as much as I would love to see her get a much-deserved punch to the face, you have to understand we couldn't let you get in trouble again. Mother would have been beyond displeased and would have lost her mind."**_

" _ **Mother is always displeased."**_ Fleur grumbled as she leaned back and closed her eyes.

Gabrielle laughed a little and nodded her head in agreement. " _ **That's definitely true, but you wouldn't want Hermione to be displeased as well."**_

Fleur let out a groan at the mention of the golden girl. " _ **Please don't tell her. She'll be very upset with me if she finds out I almost beat Veronique to a bloody pulp over her."**_

" _ **I never thought I would see the day that the great Fleur Delacour, alpha and soon to be leader of the Delacour clan, would be scared of a scolding."**_ Odette grinned at her friend.

Fleur opened one eye to peer at her friend with a half-smile. " _ **You've obviously never been scolded by Hermione Granger then."**_

/

The next morning Fleur laid in her bed, snuggling into her pillow with a soft sigh when the booming voice of her headmistress broke the peaceful silence of her room. " _ **Fleur Delacour!"**_ Bright blue eyes shot open as she jumped from the intrusion and unceremoniously fell out of bed. She shot up, looking around for the towering woman with wide eyes only to see a red howler hovering in front of her face. " _ **Report to my office immediately!"**_

Fleur grimaced as the red paper shriveled up and fell onto her bed. She let out a sigh as she trudged over to her dresser and threw on her uniform at a sluggish pace, trying to postpone what she was sure to be the scolding of a lifetime. She briefly checked the time and had to hold back a groan when she saw it was six am, far too early to be getting yelled at. She checked her appearance, touching up what she needed to with makeup and fixing her hair before heading down to her headmistresses' office with her head high.

When she opened the door she paused in her steps and a scowl overcame her face when she saw Veronique standing in the center of the room, mirroring her same expression.

" _ **How kind of you to join us Ms. Delacour."**_ Maxime glared at the blonde as she entered the room, staring down the other girl. " _ **Take a seat."**_

" _ **I prefer to-"**_

" _ **Take a seat."**_ Madame Maxime stated more firmly this time as two chairs shot up behind the girls, forcing them to sit down. " _ **So, what is this I hear about a fight breaking out between the two of you in the library?"**_

" _ **We did not fight."**_ Veronique scoffed. " _ **It was a misunderstanding."**_

" _ **A misunderstanding?"**_ Maxime asked with a raised eyebrow, looking from the raven-haired girl to Fleur with her arms crossed, clearly gritting her teeth and trying to contain herself. " _ **I find that hard to believe."**_

" _ **It's true."**_ Veronique shrugged. " _ **Right Fleur?"**_ She looked over to the blonde with a fake smile that made Fleur want to leap out of her seat and wipe it off her face, but all it took was one glance to Madame Maxime to know that would be the last nail in her coffin.

Fleur did her best to put on her most convincing smile, but it came out somewhat awkward and strained as she nodded her head. " _ **Yup."**_

" _ **I do not like liars Ms. Delacour."**_ The headmistress growled, leaning forward in her seat. " _ **I was told by multiple students that you were threatening violence on Veronique here."**_

" _ **They're exaggerating."**_ The mischievous girl rolled her emerald eyes. " _ **We were just playing around and got a little carried away. Fleur would never try to hurt me. She's my best friend."**_

Madame Maxime eyed Veronique curiously, her eyes shifting to Fleur sitting rigid in her seat, then back to the dark-haired girl. " _ **I can't do my job properly if you don't come forward Veronique. You don't have to worry about retaliation. I assure you I will handle things."**_ She said the last part with a sharp glare in the champion's direction, making the blonde let out an irritated huff as she looked off to the side.

" _ **I promise everything is fine."**_ Veronique smiled and reached over to grab the veela's hand. Fleur had to refrain from whipping her hand out of her grasp, but for appearance sake she went along with it.

" _ **If you say so . . ."**_

" _ **Does this mean I can go?"**_ Fleur asked with a scowl, trying her best to contain the anger slowly building up inside of her.

" _ **Yes."**_ Her headmistress scowled back as Fleur abruptly stood from her seat, relinquishing Veronique's grip on her. " _ **I would tread very carefully though Ms. Delacour."**_ Maxime continued, making Fleur halt in her steps. " _ **Just because you are champion, it does not mean you are untouchable. You are on very thin ice. I wouldn't want to have to contact your mother again."**_

Fleur grit her teeth with her back to the giant woman and her ex-best friend. Every part of her wanted to snap back at the other woman and beat the living daylights out of Veronique, in fact her inner veela was demanding it, but instead she nodded her head before briskly leaving the room.

Since there was no way she was going to be able to fall back asleep she decided on heading to the castle to have an early breakfast. She had just walked out of the carriage when she felt a hand grab her elbow, making her turn sharply on her heel just to come face to face once more with Veronique.

" _ **Don't touch me."**_ Fleur growled as she ripped her elbow out of the other girl's grasp.

Veronique grimaced at the harsh tone, carefully retracting her hand. " _ **Come on Fleur. This is silly."**_

" _ **I don't find you fucking with my relationship silly."**_ Fleur hissed as bright blue eyes narrowed in on deep green.

" _ **Fleur, come on-"**_

Fleur took a threatening step towards the other girl, her eyes starting to glow. " _ **I meant what I said. Stay the fuck away from me and especially Hermione. She's mine."**_

Veronique straightened her posture, refusing to back down to the intimidating figure of Fleur Delacour. _**"Is that you talking or the veela?"**_

" _ **Both."**_ Fleur sneered, her eyes glowing brighter at the dark-haired girl's persistence. She really wanted to finish what she had started with her, but the thought of being under Maxime's thumb even more than she was now, another visit from her mother, and most of all, an upset Hermione Granger made her simply walk past the other girl instead of giving into her more primal instincts.

" _ **I get it okay."**_ Veronique yelled after her retreating back. _ **"You're pissed, but you need to stop saying shit you don't mean Fleur. I thought we promised no one would ever come between us."**_

Fleur paused, glaring at the ground before she turned back around. " _ **You haven't even said sorry. I trusted you and you can't even give me a real apology."**_

" _ **Fleur-"**_

Fleur let out a defeated sigh and shook her head. " _ **Save it, because I'm over it."**_ And with that Fleur walked away, leaving Veronique standing there with a thoughtful look on her face.

/

When Fleur arrived in the dining hall she dully noted it was mostly empty as expected as she took a seat at the Gryffindor table, pushing some food around her plate. She sat like that for over half an hour without realizing the time passing or the hall filling up until she was broken from her reverie by a familiar voice.

"You're up early." Hermione smiled as she took a seat next to the blonde.

"I 'ad to take care of some . . ." Fleur stabbed a sausage a little harder than necessary. "Zings."

Hermione raised an eyebrow at the veela's not so subtle anger. "Everything okay love?"

Fleur let out a sigh as she dropped her fork, turning to face the prefect. "Je suis désolé 'Ermione. Madame Maxime just woke me up early and ees on my case. I am just tired and grumpy."

Hermione tilted her head to the side curiously. "She woke you up this early for training?"

"Well . . . ."

"Zanks for waking us up zis morning Fleur." Gabrielle grumbled as she took her seat, glaring at her sister. "Zat 'owler woke up ze entire carriage."

Hermione's brows rose high up her head at the new information while her girlfriend sunk in her seat. "Howler?"

"What 'appened was-" Fleur started, but Hermione wasn't called the brightest witch of her age for no reason. There was someone missing from the table and she could tell by the guilty look on the foreigner's face that she had broken her promise.

"This wouldn't have to do with Veronique would it?" She asked as she looked over to the Ravenclaw table to see said witch scowling at her. "Fleur!" Hermione hissed, turning back to the veela shrinking away from her. "You promised you wouldn't do anything!"

"I did not do anyzing zat she did not deserve." Fleur weakly tried to defend herself.

"Fleur Isabelle Delacour!" Hermione growled while Gabrielle and Odette looked on, clearly amused at seeing their alpha being scolded by the terrifying Hermione Granger. "What did you do?"

"I told 'er to stay away from you . . . zat ees all." Fleur mumbled.

"And that earned you a howler?"

"I may 'ave let ze veela do some of ze talking . . ."

"Some of it?" Gabrielle scoffed, earning her a sharp glare from her sister.

"I told you, it's not worth it Fleur." Hermione sighed. "I'm not trying to ruin your friendship."

"We wish you would." Odette mumbled, earning herself the same treatment from her alpha her girlfriend had just received.

"Eet was a long time coming ma belle." Fleur spoke as she carefully scooted closer to the Gryffindor, taking her hand in her own. "And eet 'ad to be done. I will per'aps work zings out wiz 'er later, but she needs to learn to stay out of zings."

"Fine." Hermione huffed. "But no more losing control or else no date."

Fleur's jaw dropped at the brunette's terms. "No date?"

"I'm just kidding." Hermione laughed.

Odette's ears perked at the mention of said date, a big smile spreading across her face; she had never heard of Fleur doing real couple things. "Date?"

Fleur groaned when she saw how excited the red-head was. "Oui."

"What's this I hear about a date?" Ginny grinned as she took her seat at the table followed by Ron and Harry.

Hermione rolled her eyes at how nosey her friends could be. "Yes Gin, we're going on a date."

Ginny leaned forward, putting her chin on her hand. "Well, where are we going?"

Hermione sputtered at the chaser's question, which Ginny enjoyed entirely too much. "Not you Gin! Fleur!"

"I know." Ginny laughed. "But it's still fun to ruffle your feathers."

"Wait, we're not invited?" Harry pretended to pout while Hermione scowled at the boy who lived.

"Of course not!"

"Right." Ron rolled his eyes. "Well where are you taking us Mione?"

"Zat ees a good question. Where are you taking us Mademoiselle Granger?" Fleur grinned over at the irritated brunette with a mischievous twinkle in those arctic eyes.

"Don't you start too." Hermione glared over at the cheeky blonde. "You're already on thin ice."

"Better watch yourself Fleur." Ron spoke, trying to contain his laughter. "Or else none of us will get to go."

"Oui, don't ruin eet for ze rest of us." Odette chimed in, making her alpha and Hermione narrow her eyes.

"Okay, but all joking aside." Ginny jumped in before Hermione killed everyone. "When and where is this date?"

"Well, I can't say where." Hermione blushed as she poked at her food, making the blonde next to her burst into a bright smile at how bashful she was being. "But it's this Saturday night."

A figure whisked by the table unbeknownst the chatty group, frowning deeply as she stormed out of the dining hall. ' _Saturday. We'll see about zat.'_

/

Saturday rolled around and Fleur was beyond excited for her first real date. The closest thing she had ever had to one was when she was with Thomas and they would hang out at his place, but that was about it and after that it was all just casual sex. Veronique had instilled in her that it was important to keep her distance, but she was done with those rules now and ready to move on to the next chapter of her life. Hermione was everything she had ever wanted and more which is why she had spent the last three hours getting ready, leaving her standing in front of her mirror, looking at her reflection with her head tilted to the side.

"Zis just won't do." She grumbled as she hastily undid her dress and proceeded to raid her closet for the tenth time that night.

She had just thrown on her favorite form fitting short white dress she had worn when she won the first task when the door to her room burst open.

" _ **My office. Now."**_ Maxime growled.

/

Hermione sat on a rock near the lake, watching the tentacles of the giant squid sway about as she nervously bounced her leg. She had been on a date or two before and it's not like she and Fleur weren't already in a committed relationship so she had no idea why her palms were sweating and her stomach was in knots. She checked the time and let out a sigh when Fleur had still yet to show up; she had only been waiting for fifteen minutes, but each second that went by felt like an eternity.

"Hermione." Came the gruff voice of Viktor Krum as he approached the nervous prodigy.

"Hey Viktor." Hermione smiled up at the Bulgarian, happy for the distraction he offered, but was a little unsure how Fleur would take it if she saw the two talking right before their date.

"I see your veela isn't here to guard you."

"I'm sorry about her Viktor. She's just . . ." Hermione sighed. "Overprotective."

"It is fine." He waved off the other girl's concern. "I understand." Hermione nodded her head while Viktor rocked back and forth on his heels nervously before he cleared his throat. "Listen, I've been meaning to talk vith you. Do you have a moment?"

Hermione looked around and there was still no sign of Fleur so she shrugged. "I guess so."

"It's about Fleur . . ."

Hermione raised an eyebrow at the mention of her absent girlfriend. "What about her?"

"I just . . ." Viktor ran a hand over the short buzz of his hair while he worked up the courage to say what he needed to. "Vell, this is just a theory, but I think Fleur may have been the one to spike our drinks vith love potion."

"What!?" Hermione jumped to her feet, rage bubbling beneath the surface at the bold accusation. "That's insane Viktor!"

"I know it is upsetting to hear, but-"

"Upsetting!?" Hermione laughed, but there was no amusement in her voice. "This is ludicrous!"

"Listen, Hermione." He pleaded. "Who else benefitted from us being drugged? Who vas the first to come after us? Who got to look like a hero and get back into your good graces?"

Hermione grit her teeth, balling her hands into tight fists. "Fleur would never do something like that and frankly, I think it's rotten of you to try to paint her as some type of villain just because you like me and I chose her."

Viktor flinched at the sting Hermione's words inflicted, but remained calm none the less; he knew this was something Hermione wouldn't want to hear, but he had to try. "That may be so Hermione . . . but I vould never try to interfere unless I really thought she did it. That girl has had her eye on you since the moment she arrived at Hogvarts and not in a good vay. I vant you to be happy, I really do, even if it's not vith me. I just get a bad feeling from that veela. I vould hate to see you get hurt."

The bookworm stood a little straighter, bristling at the seeker's words. "What do you mean by that?"

"I just-"

"No, you know what? I don't want to know." Hermione growled as she took a threatening step forward, glaring at the bigger man shrinking in on himself. "I'm tired of everyone trying to muck things up for us. Fleur isn't the horrible person everyone tries to make her out to be and if you even cared to try to have a decent conversation with her you would know that."

"I did not mean to upset set you . . ." Viktor mumbled as he looked down. "I vas just trying to look out for you."

"I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself and making my own decisions." Hermione huffed, putting her nose in the air.

"I know that. I vould just be upset vith myself if I didn't varn you at least."

"Well, consider me thoroughly warned and irritated." Hermione scowled as she sat back down on the rock, crossing her arms.

"I'm sorry Hermione. I-"

"Just go." The brunette cut off the seeker, redirecting her glare to the lake as Viktor nodded his head, swallowing the lump in his throat before he made his hasty departure. She sat like that for a while, a million thoughts racing through her mind. ' _How could he think such a thing? Fleur is entirely incapable of doing something so horrible . . . right?'_

/

Fleur all but flew out of the carriage the second the towering woman finally let her go from her impromptu detention, her white dress a little dirty and her hair a bit of a mess as she used every swear word she knew while stumbling through the grass in her high heels. It would seem Madame Maxime was set on keeping her on a tight leash and disciplining her despite the raven-haired girl denying her claims although she had a horrible gnawing feeling that her ex best-friend was the one behind the detention. Either way, she would have to find out who betrayed her later. Right now, all that mattered was getting to the brunette.

She could tell by how dark it was she was considerably late. Their date was supposed to be at four and by the looks of it, it was six or so. She prayed to whatever deity there might be that Hermione would not break up with her over her absence. The giant woman had given her no chance to argue or even contact someone to tell Hermione about what was happening.

Her heart was pounding in her chest as she neared their meet up point and upon seeing the rock she was hoping to see Hermione at she slowed to a walk as it stopped and dropped into her stomach. "Merde." She mumbled to herself, running a hand through messy blonde locks as she looked around the area, but the prodigy was nowhere in sight. _'She must 'ate me.'_ She thought to herself as she sat down on the rock and put her head in her hands, desperately trying to think of a way she could make it up to the brunette, that is if she would even be willing to talk with her. She sat there, wallowing in self-pity when a soft voice interrupted her brooding.

"You're late."

Fleur's head shot up at the sound of Hermione Granger's voice, blue eyes widening when she saw the prefect standing before her with her hands behind her back and her head tilted to the side. "You waited for me?"

A small smile graced Hermione's face as she nodded her head. "Of course."

Fleur was beyond shocked that not only had her girlfriend waited for her for hours, but was standing there staring down at her with a patient look on her features, waiting for some sort of explanation instead of berating her. "I am so sorry ma belle." Fleur shot to her feet when she realized a big apology was overdue and grabbed the Gryffindor's hand. "You 'ave every right to be upset wiz me, but you must believe me when I say zis ees not my fault. Madame Maxime burst into my room as I was getting ready and dragged me to 'er office to make me serve detention. She claims someone else ratted on me for my encounter wiz Veronique and she decided to punish me. She would not even let me try to contact Gabrielle or Odette so I could tell you."

Hermione wanted to be angry and she really should be seeing as she had waited for the blonde for over two hours, feeling like a complete idiot, and now there was no way they would be able to make it to their date, but she couldn't deny the tug she felt in her chest when she saw the guilt written all over Fleur's face.

"'Ermione, I really did not mean to ruin zis evening. Please do not 'ate me, I-"

Hermione cut off the veela by placing a soft, lingering kiss on the slightly taller girls' lips, effectively shutting her up before she pulled away. "It's alright Fleur. I understand."

Fleur was completely taken aback by the sweet action, expecting a thorough tongue lashing at least. "R-really?"

"I know you wouldn't hurt me on purpose. I trust you." Hermione smiled sincerely. She couldn't help but throw that in as a slight to Viktor for assuming the worst of the French witch who clearly was the opposite of what so many thought of her. She had a lot of time to sit and think about things and felt guilty she had questioned the blonde's intentions for even a second, especially after seeing how hard she really had tried to get to her. Seeing the panic and remorse written all over her girlfriend's face looking for her at their meet up point just reaffirmed her belief that, at heart, Fleur Delacour is a good person and would never do something as sinister as Viktor suggested.

"Ees zere any way zat we can still make eet to zat date?" Fleur bit her lower lip, looking hopefully at the Gryffindor.

Hermione shook her head no with a sad sigh. "Unfortunately not. It's gotten too late."

"Merde." Fleur grumbled, looking down disappointedly.

"But that doesn't mean we can't reschedule to next week." Hermione smiled, trying to lift her girlfriend's spirits.

"I 'ave dentention every weekend until ze tournament ees over . . ." Fleur mumbled, kicking a rock.

"Well, we can work something out." Hermione shrugged. "I'm not letting you off the hook that easily Delacour." Hermione smirked when Fleur lifted guilty icy orbs to meet her own curiously. "You owe me a date."

"You still want to go on a date wiz me even after I messed up so 'orribly?"

Hermione just rolled her eyes and smiled, lightly pushing the champion. "Don't be daft. Of course, I do. You look lovely by the way." Hermione bit her lower lip, looking the other girl up and down, trying to hold back her laughter as she pulled a twig from Fleur's hair. "Even though you got a bit dirty."

"Eet ees not my fault." Fleur huffed, swatting the amused prefect's hand away from her messy blonde locks. "Zat 'orrible woman 'ad me scrubbing ze outside of ze carriage and I got into a bit of an altercation wiz zat 'ippogriff and Professeur Black."

"You mean Buckbeak?"

"Oui, I believe zat ees what 'e called eet." Fleur scrunched her nose, still upset by the earlier events. "I merely tried to get around eet and eet sent me tumbling into some bushes. Zen Professeur Black insisted zat **I** apologize to **eet**! Moi! Can you believe zat!?" Fleur growled.

Hermione had to try to stifle her laughter due to the distress on her girlfriend's face but couldn't stop it from spilling from her lips.

"Eet ees not funny!" Fleur pouted, stomping her foot childishly.

"It's a little funny." Hermione's laughter finally slowed while a smile spread across Fleur's face at how adorable the Gryffindor looked out of breath from laughing.

"Well, I know ze date ees ruined and I look like a mess . . ." Fleur grimaced as she pulled another twig from her hair, making the brunette hide her laughter behind her hand. "But ees zere any chance you would like to go for a stroll wiz me Mademoiselle Granger? I promise I'm good company." Fleur held out her hand to the Gryffindor, which Hermione happily took.

"Alright, but let's stick to the shadows." Hermione smirked at Fleur's confused expression. "I wouldn't want to be seen with such a hot mess. I mean, what would the papers say? Skeeter would have a field day!"

"'Ermione!" Fleur whined as the prefect burst into another fit of giggles.

/

"Soooo, how was the date?" Ginny grinned at Hermione and Fleur on Monday morning as she took her seat at the Gryffindor table. "Tell me all the details."

"I wouldn't know." Fleur sighed sadly, looking down at her food. "I made us miss eet."

Ginny tilted her head, looking at the two girls with a confused expression on her face. "Huh?"

"This one just can't seem to stay out of trouble." Hermione smirked while Fleur scowled down at her yogurt. "She got detention."

"Bloody 'ell. On a Saturday night?" Ginny grimaced. "And I thought Snape was bad."

"'E ees nozing compared to zat woman." Fleur grumbled, glaring discreetly over at her headmistress.

The chaser laughed at the blonde's expression. "Well there's always next time, right?"

"I suppose." Fleur sighed, redirecting her glare to the raven-haired girl at the Ravenclaw table before looking down dejectedly at her barely touched breakfast.

Hermione felt her heart drop at the sad look on the blonde's face; she really must have been looking forward to that date. A sharp kick in her shin made her jump a bit and scowl across the table at the red-head giving her a pointed look and nodding her head in the veela's direction. 'Do something.' Ginny mouthed.

Hermione fought every instinct in her to hurt the chaser back, but instead she turned back to the champion, her mouth hanging dumbly open as she floundered, struggling to find something to do or say to cheer up the other girl. As she was about to say something a chime rang through the hall, signaling everyone to get to class.

"I'll see you guys later." Ginny spoke as she got up, giving Hermione another pointed look before making her exit.

Fleur let out another sigh, pushing her food away as she stood up as well. "I suppose I should get to class too." She leaned down, placing a chaste kiss on Hermione's cheek who sat there with her brow furrowed.

An idea struck Hermione, one that she herself thoroughly disapproved of, but when she saw the veela turn to leave she shot to her feet and snatched Fleur's wrist. "Wait."

Fleur turned back around with a questioning look in those artic eyes. "What ees eet ma belle?"

"Let's skip."

Fleur's brows rose high up her head at those words voluntarily slipping from Hermione Granger's mouth. "Skip . . .?" She put the back of her hand to Hermione's forehead with a concerned look on her face. "Are you feeling alright?"

Hermione scoffed and swatted the blonde's hand away. "I mean it. Let's do it." Hermione grinned.

Fleur tilted her head to the side curiously. "Pourquoi?"

"Because you owe me a date." Hermione intertwined her fingers with Fleur's, a determined look on her face as her Gryffindor courage really kicked in.

A big smile threatened to split Fleur's face in half as Hermione dragged her out of the great hall, carefully dodging any Professors lingering around as she led the intrigued foreigner down the path to Hogsmeade. "Won't we get caught eef we go 'ere?" Fleur asked as she looked around.

"Since when do you care about being caught?" Hermione looked over her shoulder with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.

"Since when 'ave you not?" Fleur laughed while Hermione rolled her eyes.

"I'm not the goody-goody everyone thinks I am."

"But you're pretty close." Fleur grinned while Hermione came to a stop and turned around to glare at the veela.

"I'm going to pretend you didn't say that." Hermione grumbled while Fleur watched her curiously as she took off her robe and folded it up, carefully putting it in her satchel and loosening her tie. "Close your eyes."

Fleur raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at the prefect. "Ees zis a trap?"

Hermione shrugged in response. "Maybe. Guess you'll have to close your eyes to find out."

Bright sapphires locked onto amber eyes glimmering with amusement watching her expectantly. "Fine." Fleur sighed as she complied. She felt the grip on her hand tighten and then a tugging in her abdomen that almost made her nauseous. "Ermoine-"

"Keep them closed." Hermione firmly instructed as she now led the blonde by the hand through unknown territory. A familiar scent hit Fleur's nose making her want to open her eyes to see what her girlfriend was up to, but complied none the less until they came to a complete stop. "You can open them now."

Fleur's eyes fluttered open and widened almost immediately when she realized they were in France standing in the middle of the courtyard of what seemed to be a gorgeous royal palace. Right in front of them was a giant crystal pyramid centered in a fountain, an interesting contrast to the architecture of the building surrounding them. "'Ermione . . ." Electric blue eyes turned to the grinning brunette. "Where . . .?"

"We're in Paris!" Hermione beamed.

"I figured we were somewhere een France . . ." Fleur furrowed her brow as she looked around curiously at the beautiful building surrounding them. "What ees zis place?"

It was Hermione's turn to look at the blonde with wide eyes. "You don't know what the Louvre is?"

"Ze Louvre?"

Hermione was completely taken aback; she figured someone who loved art so much and happened to live where one of the most famous art museums is would at least know what it was, even if it was a muggle place. "You have lived in France your whole life and don' know what the Louvre is?"

Fleur simply shook her head no and looked around, taking note of some muggles walking around, pointing contraptions at the pyramid and taking what seemed to be photos. "Non, my mozer would never allow me to go to muggle places like zis."

Hermione inwardly cringed at the revelations and sincerely hoped Fleur's parents didn't suffer from the blood purity syndrome like some witches and wizards, but let it go for the sake of their date. "Well, you're in for a treat." Hermione grinned as she grabbed her girlfriend's hand once more and lead her through the courtyard into the building.

The second they crossed the threshold and turned a corner Fleur paused in her steps, making Hermione stop and look back to see arctic eyes darting every which way, drinking in the portraits, paintings, and sculptures. "'Ermione . . ." Fleur spoke without prying her eyes away from the gorgeous art surrounding her. "Ees zis an art museum?"

Hermione nodded her head, her grin spreading at the wonder and excitement barely being contained by those bright sapphire orbs. "Only one of the most famous. I was worried you had already been here and-"

"Come on, let's look around." Fleur beamed, cutting off her girlfriend who had to refrain from laughing at her child-like excitement practically vibrating off every inch of her skin. She hadn't even gotten a chance to reply to the blonde before the art had caught her eye once more and in a turn of events Fleur had become their guide and was now dragging Hermione down the hallway.

Much to Hermione's amusement Fleur would yank her in a new direction every minute or so, eager to see every single piece of art hanging on the wall and every devastatingly beautiful statue carefully sculpted. She would pause every now and then for a good couple of minutes to just stop and stare at the more interesting pieces, tilting her head to the side and sometimes furrowing her brow as if she was trying to solve a difficult puzzle.

In those moments Hermione would look more at Fleur than the painting, because to her the most beautiful thing in that museum was the blonde appreciating the art, trying to figure out perhaps what the artist was trying to convey, what strokes they used with their brush to create the aesthetic, and maybe what had inspired them to make such a piece. It was truly one of the most beautiful things she had seen, watching Fleur in her natural environment and skipping school, breaking one of her most sacred rules, was entirely worth it.

When they finally came to a room with a glass ceiling, natural light flooding the huge room with wood floors and white walls Fleur curiously peaked her head inside to see one painting sitting at the end of the long room.

"Zis painting gets eets own room?" Fleur asked with a raised eyebrow as she walk down the red carpet to stand in front of the curious artwork.

"Mmhmm." Hermione nodded her head, smiling a little at the fact Fleur had no idea what the piece was. "It's the Mona Lisa. One of the most famous pieces of art ever made by Leonardo Da Vinci. It was created in 1503, but it didn't become famous until 1911 when someone stole it. I mean, it was always considered a masterpiece, but once it got stolen it really caught the public's attention. They caught the guy who did it two years later though and now here it is."

"Why would someone steal eet?" Fleur frowned.

"He claimed he was trying to return it to its place of birth." Hermione rolled her eyes. "He said Napoleon stole it."

"Who ees Napoleon?"

Hermione laughed as they started to walk away. "That is another story that is entirely too long."

Fleur just grinned over at the brunette who happily answered all of her silly questions that maybe most muggles knew so she assumed it might get irritating after a while, but Hermione remained patient even after she yanked her down every corridor they could find. "Who needs a tour guide when I 'ave 'Ermione Granger."

Hermione just scoffed in response with a smile, walking up flights of marble stairs until Fleur came to another stop, her eyes wide as she stared at an eight foot statue in front of them with no head or arms, but there were wings sprouting out the back of the sculpture as it stood on the prow of a ship. "What ees zis one?"

"It's called The Winged Victory of Samothrace. It's Greek." Hermione smiled, this was her favorite part of the Louvre. "It was created to honor the Goddess of speed, strength, and victory Nike and to honor a sea battle."

"Eet's beautiful." Fleur sighed. She wished to reach out and touch the marble of the sculpture, but knew far better than to do that so instead she just stood in awe while Hermione watched her with a smile still pulling at her lips.

"Yeah . . ."

After a couple minutes Fleur finally tore her gaze away from the statue to see the Gryffindor watching her with a curious look drifting in those luminous amber orbs. "What ees eet?"

A soft blush colored Hermione's cheeks when she realized she had been caught staring. "N-nothing. Just zoned out."

A knowing smile crossed Fleur's features. "Eef you say so." She winked at the prodigy before she grabbed her hand and pulled her in a new direction.

The two spent hours walking around the museum, admiring all of the different artwork the museum had to offer while Fleur asked questions and Hermione patiently answered them. They had seen every painting at least twice before Fleur let out a sigh. "I am beat."

Hermione grinned at the obviously over-stimulated veela as they walked out of the museum. "Are you hungry?"

Fleur seemed to perk up immediately at the suggestion of food in her home country that she had been sorely missing since her arrival in Hogwarts. "Oui."

"Well, come on then." Hermione took the lead once more, taking them to a small café nearby where they could get coffee and some pastries.

"I missed zis so much." Fleur beamed as they took a seat at a secluded table with their coffee and delicious treats. Fleur licked her lips, unsure of which to do first; drink her coffee or eat her éclair while Hermione watched her with a glint in her eye, sipping on her coffee.

"I figured you might be a little homesick." Fleur nodded her head as she decided on biting into the chocolate éclair, having to refrain from rolling her eyes into the back of her head when the taste of it hit her lips. "Okay, maybe more than a little." Hermione laughed at the pure delight shining on Fleur's face from the treat.

"Je suis désolé 'Ermione." Fleur smiled sheepishly as she took a drink of her coffee. "Eet's just so good."

"I understand."

"You always do." Fleur's smile softened as she grabbed the prefect's hand across the table. "I must really apologize zough."

"For what?"

"For being a 'orrible date." Fleur blushed as she looked down at the table while Hermione furrowed her brow in confusion.

"Why would you think you weren't a good date? I had fun."

"Well . . ." Fleur gulped nervously, not entirely comfortable with the feeling of vulnerability. "I 'ave never been on one so I am not entirely sure 'ow I am supposed to go about zis." Fleur replied, biting her lower lip as she looked up at the bookworm with shock written all over her face.

"You're having a go at me . . . right? You've been on a date before Fleur." Fleur's cheeks turned a brighter red as she looked back down at the table, confirming that she was not in fact lying. "How is that even possible?"

Fleur just shrugged in response. "I do not know. I just 'ave not found anyone zat I liked enough to date."

"Not even Veronique?" Hermione asked with a raised eyebrow, making the blonde's head shoot up.

"What?"

"I just . . . I mean . . ." Hermione let out a sigh while she ran a hand through brown locks. She had not meant for THAT question to slip out, but it had been weighing heavily on her mind still. The raven-haired girl acted as if they were lovers. "You two seem like you have . . . you know . . ."

Fleur felt dread fill her gut, everything was going so well and then just the mention of Veronique made her panic. The prodigy didn't need to know the activities they had partaken in together and even if she did, their first date was hardly the appropriate time to talk about them. "Non. Never." Fleur frowned.

"So, I'm your first?" Hermione asked as she bit her lower lip, relief washing over her while Fleur nodded her head.

"And I am very 'appy you are." Fleur smiled. "'Onestly, I did not deserve such a zoughtful date. No one 'as ever done somezing like zis for me before."

"It wasn't too over the top was it?" Hermione asked as she pulled her hand from the other girls, nervously fidgeting in her seat. She had really wanted their first date to be special, but she had been worried that she went a little too far and she didn't want to scare Fleur away.

"Non." Fleur shook her head. "Eet was perfect. I 'ave lived een France my entire life and I 'ave never 'ad zis much fun."

"Really?"

The blonde just nodded her head, deciding on sharing a little more of herself with the girl she had grown to adore. "Oui. My mozer seldom let me leave ze 'ouse. Ze only way I got out ees eef I snuck out and eef we were out for some reason zere was zis 'orrible pressure to be perfect and make sure I was projecting a good image for ze clan. I was never really . . ." Fleur let out a sorrowful sigh, looking out the window wistfully while Hermione watched her with broken amber eyes.

"Free." Hermione finished for the veela whose bright eyes quickly flickered over to hers.

"Oui, but we're all een our own private traps. Clamped een zem and none of us can ever get out." Fleur smiled sadly over at the prodigy. "I was born into mine so I don't really mind eet anymore."

"But you should." Hermione frowned, gripping the edge of her skirt tightly under the table, hating the defeated look Fleur wore. "You should mind it."

"Per'aps I do." Fleur shrugged, looking back out the window. "I just say I don't."

Hermione felt her heart shatter in her chest at the words uttered so easily from the veela; she really wasn't able to be normal like everyone else. She knew exactly how that felt. Living up to the expectations of everyone and the wizarding world to end Voldemort ripped away her childhood and she couldn't stand the thought of Fleur living through the same thing. "Well . . ." Hermione swallowed the lump in her throat and smiled in a way she hoped was reassuring and comforting. "You don't have to worry about that today." Fleur turned her head ever so slightly with a raised eyebrow, intrigued by where Hermione was going with this. "I was going to have us head back after this, but seeing as we have a lot more time we can stick around for a while longer."

For the millionth time that day a smile broke across Fleur's face, all dark thoughts immediately leaving her mind at the proposition; she had been smiling so much that she was worried her cheeks were going to be sore. "Really?"

"Yeah, whatever you want to do."

Fleur grinned mischievously. "Whatever I want to do?"

"Within reason!" Hermione quickly corrected her sentence, pointing a warning finger in the excited champion's face.

"Okay, okay." Fleur laughed as she leaned back in her chair and sipped her coffee. "By ze way, you never did tell me 'ow you were able to get us a permit to come 'ere."

"I guess helping defeat Voldemort has it's perks." Hermione shrugged. "I just had to send a letter and they gave me a portkey."

"Hmmm, I guess dating a celebrity 'as eets perks as well zen." Fleur smirked while Hermione laughed.

"I suppose, but there's a reason why I had to take you to muggle Paris." Hermione grimaced. "Merlin only knows what would happen if I had been caught by Skeeter sneaking out to go on a date with you."

"Well zen, we better make ze most of zis freedom before we are forced back eento our cages."

"Oh, what do you have in mind?"

"Let's go explore." Fleur grinned as she stood up and grabbed her girlfriend's hand who was happy to comply before leading them out of the café.

/

The two spent the rest of the day exploring the streets of Paris, stopping in shops to poke around and going to parks to bask in the sun and before they knew it it had grown dark. "I guess we better go back." Hermione sighed, looking out at the beautiful lights of Paris wistfully.

"Do we 'ave to?" Fleur whined, making the prodigy smile at her childish antics.

"Unfortunately, yes. I mean, we can stay if you don't mind being interrogated by the French ministry." Hermione laughed while Fleur grimaced.

"Non, zat does not sound like fun."

"I didn't think so." Hermione grinned as she led them to an abandoned alley and went to reach into her pocket, but paused for a moment when she saw the veela looking over her shoulder longingly. "Don't worry, you'll be back before you know it." Hermione smiled reassuringly at the blonde who turned to her with an odd expression on her face.

"Eet will not be ze same wizout you." Fleur smiled sadly, making the brunette blush lightly. "Zis was ze best time I 'ave ever 'ad een my own country."

"Well then, I'll have to make sure to get plenty of portkeys to visit." Hermione swallowed the lump in her throat, trying to sound confident while pushing down the gnawing question of what would they in fact do when they went their separate ways. The thought of not being able to be with Fleur killed her, but it's not as if she could say it.

"Hmmmm, per'aps, but I may 'ave a better idea." Fleur smirked as she took a couple carefully calculated steps forward while Hermione played along and stepped back until her back was pressed against the wall.

"And what is this superior plan you have?" Hermione asked with a raised eyebrow, trying to remain calm under Fleur's intense gaze and the proximity making her heart pound wildly in her chest.

"Well, eet ees actually quite simple." Fleur hummed as she rested a hand over the war hero's head, leaning in just enough to catch Hermione's attention. "Run away wiz me."

"Oh?" Hermione asked with baited breath, hypnotized by the glowing neon blue orbs staring straight through her soul. "And where would we go?"

"Where ever we want." Fleur spoke softly as she leaned in a little more, bringing her lips closer to the object of her affection. "Eet does not matter to me as long as you are zere."

"Won't you miss your home?" Hermione started to lean in too as if Fleur was a magnet drawing her in with every breath she took.

Fleur shook her head as she brought her free hand to Hermione's jaw, tilting her head up ever so slightly. "Where ever you are ees 'ome."

Hermione felt her cheeks heat up at the profession of love from the normally stoic champion, but didn't have much time to flounder when Fleur's lips descended onto her own, pressing softly against her. Her eyes fluttered shut, the feathery kiss causing goosebumps to erupt on her arms. It wasn't urgent or aggressive like the previous kisses they shared, it was gentle and held a hint of a promise. She knew she loved Fleur Delacour, but she had never felt it as strongly as she did now. It was in this moment she knew she would give anything to the girl that was so broken yet so perfect, because she was her home too, but the depth of everything was really hitting her; she felt it so strongly that it almost scared her and it brought her to pull away, leaving the veela looking confused.

"W-we should go."

Fleur simply nodded her head, a hint of disappointment in her eyes as she took Hermione's hand and Hermione grabbed the portkey, sending them spiraling once more.

/

It took the couple a minute or so to collect themselves after the twisting of their stomachs and their abrupt arrival in Hogsmeade, but when they did Fleur froze with wide eyes, looking over the prefect's shoulder. "Don't turn around." Hermione raised an eyebrow in response, but Fleur answered quietly before the question could leave her lips. "Zat 'orrid Skeeter woman ees 'ere and ees 'eading zis way."

Amber eyes matched surprised sapphire. "Run."

"Quoi?"

Instead of replying Hermione took off running, grabbing Fleur's hand and pulling her in the direction of the forbidden forest, leaving a very confused Rita Skeeter in their wake. They ran as fast as their already tired legs would carry them, laughing at the absurdity of their situation and their great escape only stopping when they reached a familiar clearing.

"I think we lost her." Hermione smiled through pants as she rested her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath.

"I zink we lost 'er a while ago." Fleur replied and looked around, just now realizing where they were. "Did you mean to lead us 'ere?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Not really. No." Hermione laughed as she stood up straight, looking up at the clear night sky sparkling with billions of stars that all seemed to be on display. "I suppose my instincts took over. Good thing I did, because the sky is bloody brilliant tonight."

"Oui, eet ees." Fleur smiled as she followed Hermione's line of sight, admiring the full moon before turning her attention back to the brunette. "Per'aps we can stay a while?" She asked as she walked over to the rock hanging a couple feet over the lake and sat down. "Eef we are een trouble ze damage ees already done so might as well enjoy ze night."

"I . . ." Hermione turned her attention back to the blonde, but her voice caught in her throat when she saw the veela sitting on the edge of the rock, leaning back on her hands, and staring up at the night sky with a far off look in her eyes. In that moment Fleur looked more like a magical creature than she ever had before. The moonlight streamed down and made the champion's eyes appear almost silvery, made her blonde locks glisten, and gave her skin a supernatural glow. "I suppose you're right." Hermione finally finished her sentence when she shook herself out of her daze and made her way over to her girlfriend.

Fleur hummed her approval as Hermione took a seat next to her, looking down at the water reflecting the sky. "Fleur . . ."

"Oui?" Fleur asked without tearing her eyes away from the moon.

Hermione struggled for a moment with what she wanted to ask ever since she read about it, but it never seemed to be a good time and now that such a thing presented itself to her she wasn't sure what to do. "Do you . . . Am I . . ." Hermione furrowed her brow, wrapping her fingers around the necklace Fleur gave her.

Fleur finally turned her attention back to the bookworm who seemed to be having an internal battle. "What ees eet 'Ermione?"

Hermione let out a breath before locking eyes with worried sapphires. "Am I your mate?"

Fleur's eyes widened at the very unexpected question, but quickly collected herself when she saw Hermione shifting nervously. "Non."

Hermione's face dropped at the answer, looking back down at the water dejectedly. She had been so sure that she was, especially with how Fleur was acting, but she had been so very wrong.

"Zere ees no such zing as mates."

Hermione's head snapped back up, looking confused herself now. "But I read a book and it said-"

Fleur smiled over at the brunette, trying to ease whatever it was that was plaguing her thoughts. "I 'ate to say zis, especially to you 'Ermione, but some books are misleading and wildly inaccurate. Many veela books talk about mates, but eet ees more of a fairytale zan anyzing."

"Oh . . .I see . . ." Hermione smiled sadly. She didn't know why it bothered her that she wasn't Fleur's mate or that mates didn't even exist, but it tugged at her heart almost painfully.

"But . . ." Fleur continued on when she saw the disappointed look in the brunette's eyes. "Eef I did 'ave a mate . . ." She scooted closer to the Gryffindor so their legs were touching and carefully intertwined their fingers when their hands met while curious gold watched her every move. "I'm sure eet would be you. At least I would 'ope eet would be."

Hermione felt her cheeks heat up and her heart flutter in her chest at the statement. "I-"

"And I zink zis ees better non?" Fleur asked with a tilt of her head. "Zere ees no mystical force pulling us togezer." Fleur started to bring her lips closer to cherry red itching to be kissed. "I get to choose you wiz my own free will and. . ." Her eyelids started to close of their own accord while Hermione seemed to stop breathing all together. "I would choose you every time." Fleur paused her movement, her eyes flickering from enchanted gold back down to Hermione's already slightly parted lips. She needed Hermione, she knew that much, but she had to know if Hermione needed her too. "Would you choose me?"

A fire sparked in Hermione's amber eyes that threatened to burn them both down at the question, knowing the answer before it even left her lips, but instead of answering verbally she placed her hand on the back of the champion's neck and pulled her in the last inch to press her lips against Fleur's in an intimate kiss. She was returning the promise Fleur gave her in the alley; she had been startled by the intensity of her own feelings in the moment, but she wasn't scared now.

Fleur was slightly shocked by the depth of the kiss, her heart thudding painfully in her chest as if Hermione sent a jolt of electricity straight to the organ. She reached to grab the prefect's hip, but the brunette pulled away before she got the chance, leaving her confused once more.

Hermione just smiled at the adorable perplexed look on Fleur's face before responding softly. "Always."

That one simple word hung in the air, making everything stop. Neither one was sure who lunged forward first, but a second later they were brought back together in a passionate kiss.

Hermione buried her hands in silky strands of blonde hair, pulling the veela as close to her as possible, but found it frustratingly impossible to do so sitting side by side. Fleur felt the same need and frustration while her hands desperately grabbed at Hermione's hips and was about to fix their situation when Hermione quickly moved to straddle her.

The veela in Fleur seemed to purr its approval of the prodigy's sudden leap in confidence, something she knew was there, but usually took a lot more provoking to come out. She squeezed the prefect's hips to show her appreciation as Hermione bit down on her lower lip, tugging on the flesh in a way that made her eyes roll back and sparked a fire in the pit of her stomach.

Hermione felt a similar spark as the veela started to run her hands up under the front of her shirt, shuddering when Fleur's soft hands made contact with her skin, but before she could get too far Hermione pushed her down by her shoulders, making her lay flat on her back with a bewildered look in those glowing neon eyes.

Hermione didn't say anything to the quiet question being posed and instead responded by taking her tie off before bringing her hands to the front of her shirt, starting to unbutton her top button with shaky fingers and then making her way to the second while maintaining eye contact with the girl beneath her.

Fleur could only watch with wide eyes at what was happening on top of her; her heart felt like it was completely out of control, her breathing was erratic, and it felt as if she had just been sat in the electric chair. She knew what this meant and every inch of skin that was slowly being revealed brought her closer. She could see Hermione's hands shaking, reflecting exactly how she felt inside and in that moment she couldn't remember ever feeling like this.

Her teeth were on edge as she watched Hermione unbutton another pesky obstacle; she wanted Hermione more than anything, her veela was screaming at her to take her right there, but she saw the apprehension in those amber eyes and that was enough to make her reach up to stop Hermione's hands, earning her puzzled look. "'Ermione . . . You don't 'ave to do zis."

Hermione just removed her hand, smiling nervously down at the blonde. "I want to." She responded softly as she finished unbuttoning the last buttons and shrugged off the shirt to reveal a white lacy bra.

Fleur could only lay there in awe as Hermione leaned down to capture her lips in a slower, more purposeful kiss before righting herself while Fleur remained frozen, for once unsure of what to do when it came to something that was supposed to be natural for her. It was as if she was under a spell, but one slow roll of Hermione's hips easily broke it, bringing her crashing down to reality.

Fleur tentatively ran her hands up the front of Hermione's thighs, looking for any sign that it wasn't okay, but Hermione seemed a little less nervous as she bit her lower lip and rolled her hips again, her eyes glossing over as Fleur's started to glow brighter with the revelation that she was indeed allowed to touch her girlfriend. Her hands slid higher and higher up until she reached the bottom of Hermione's skirt, yet another obstacle that was in her way. This simply wouldn't do so Fleur raised her hand, reaching for the clasp of the skirt and undoing it with barely steady fingers.

Glowing eyes flickered up to see golden ones watching her with still a little bit of apprehension so Fleur sat up just enough to press a kiss to Hermione's ribs while her hands relocated to the prodigy's lower back. Hermione shivered at the feeling of those soft lips on her skin, it felt like every inch of her was hyper sensitive, making her entirely too aware of every small movement Fleur made.

Fleur just smiled against the brunette's skin, slowly kissing her way up higher while her hands followed suit. For the moment, she skipped over Hermione's bra in favor of kissing her scar, letting her lips linger there a little longer than anywhere else before she looked up to see foggy amber staring back. It took only a second for her to lean up the rest of the way to capture Hermione's lips in a deep kiss that just fanned the flames already burning inside of her.

Hermione sighed against the veela's lips, her body relaxing into the girl beneath her while skilled digits found the clasp of her bra and unhooked it with a simple snap of her fingers. The Gryffindor couldn't help but blush when she felt the bra loosen and Fleur pulled away to carefully pull it off to reveal the flesh hidden underneath.

Once more Fleur was in awe of the vulnerable girl above her as she sat there for a moment, looking at Hermione Granger topless and exposed. Her breasts, in her opinion, were perfect; medium, but firm and she couldn't help herself from leaning in once more to kiss just underneath her left breast. A soft gasp escaped Hermione's lips when her mouth found its way to a dark pink nipple, flicking her tongue over the bud, earning her a quiet moan of appreciation that was enough to drive her crazy.

Fleur could almost physically feel her self-control snap at the sound and couldn't resist leaning back up to capture those cherry lips in a smoldering kiss. She couldn't hold back anymore, she needed more so with one quick twist of her body she flipped their positions and had the war hero on her back.

Once she had the prodigy sufficiently pinned she kissed her way down to Hermione's neck, sucking on the soft skin while one hand slid its way up her slightly toned stomach until it came in contact with her other breast. "You are so perfect ma belle." Fleur mumbled against the skin while Hermione arched into her touch.

"Fleur. . ." Hermione breathed out, trying to concentrate on the conversation, but Fleur's skilled mouth and her hand massaging her breast was making it difficult.

"Do you 'ave any idea what you do to me?" She continued on, her teeth scraping Hermione's pulse point while she moved her hand from the prefect's breast down her ribs to her stomach and then her skirt. Hermione seemed to tense a little when she started to pull it down so she stopped and pushed herself up a little more to look down at the Gryffindor. "You can change your mind at any time  
chérie. I will not be upset. I promise." Fleur smiled down reassuringly at Hermione, making the war hero's heart melt at how thoughtful the blonde could be.

Hermione just shook her head, blushing under the foreigner's stare. "No, I don't want to stop. I . . ." Hermione bit her lower lip, her blush increasing in intensity as she finished her sentence. "I want you."

Fleur felt a surge of heat at the words and didn't need to be told twice so she nodded her head for Hermione to scoot backwards and the girl obliged while she gripped the top of her skirt, slowly sliding it down her legs until she was left in only her white underwear. Fleur proceeded to stand up, she needed to feel her bare skin against her girlfriend's and her dress was not helping anything so she carefully pulled down her zipper while Hermione watched with wide amber eyes drinking in every inch of flesh that revealed itself to her.

When Fleur finally shimmied her way out of her dress she carelessly tossed it to the side while Hermione just laid there gaping at her in her black lingerie. Fleur Delacour was perfect in absolutely every way; there wasn't a single flaw on her thin toned body. The only thing that could maybe be seen as an imperfection was the lone freckle right beneath her collar bone that had caught her attention so long ago, but Hermione found it incredibly fitting and charming. She couldn't help but think that Fleur was proportioned in a way that vaguely reminded her of the Greek Goddess Aphrodite.

"Bloody Hell . . ." Hermione mumbled. She had seen Fleur in this state of undress a good number of times, but this time it felt completely different. Hermione was nervous and excited all at the same time; she was really going to finally take the last step and with the girl of her dreams who just happened to be drop dead gorgeous.

"My zoughts exactly." Fleur purred as she got on her knees and crawled to the prodigy, only stopping when she was hovering over the awestruck girl.

Gold locked with glowing blue for a moment, but the moment was short lived when Hermione grabbed Fleur by the back of her head and pulled her in, making the blonde crash her lips onto the eager war hero's. Fleur had to hold back a moan when Hermione's grip on her hair tightened in an attempt to bring her even closer which the veela was all too happy to comply with so she pressed her body to Hermione's, moving her hips into the prefect's in a way that made Hermione bite down on the champion's lower lip and move into the French witch.

Fleur was almost shocked when Hermione's other hand found its way to the back of her bra and unclasped it almost the second she touched it, making the veela pull back so the she could take off the offending garment and toss it to the side while Hermione licked her lips.

"Eef you keep giving me zat look, I'm not going to be able to 'old back 'Ermione Granger." Fleur warned, her eyes glowing slightly brighter.

"Don't hold back." Hermione spoke breathlessly as she started to remove her own panties, but Fleur stopped her before she got too far, leaving the prodigy befuddled once more.

"Zat ees my job." Fleur smirked as she carefully grabbed the sides of Hermione's underwear, pulling it down long tan toned legs until the Gryffindor was free from the fabric and now completely naked. Fleur's inner veela purred at the beautiful sight of Hermione Granger laying nude in the moonlight and completely ready for the taking.

Fleur went to do just that but a hand placed on her chest stopped her, leaving her confused now. "You still have yours on." Hermione raised an eyebrow and before Fleur could respond the brunette sat up and took it upon herself to slide the black fabric down Fleur's thighs until they hit her knees, forcing the blonde to push the fabric the rest of the way down herself, leaving her just as exposed as the Gryffindor.

"Better?" Fleur asked with a smile as she came back to hover over the prefect while Hermione just dumbly nodded her head.

The two stayed like that for a moment, each admiring the other, before Hermione's hands started to explore on her own. A shiver ran down Fleur's spine when she felt those curious hands run down her bare back, ghosting over the sinfully soft skin in a way that made it seem like the brilliant witch was trying to memorize every twitch of her muscles, every curve, and every dip in her figure. Usually someone would carelessly take her at this point, but not Hermione Granger; somewhere deep down she had always known it would be different with her.

"'Ermione . . ." Fleur sighed, closing her eyes so she could relish in the soft touch of her lover. "I love you."

"I love you too." Hermione spoke softly, bringing her fingers back up between the veela's shoulder blades. She took note of Fleur's arms shaking next to her head, whether from holding her weight up for too long or from anticipation, she wasn't sure, but either way she pulled the blonde down, bringing her lips back to the most addicting thing she had ever tasted in her life.

Fleur had to hold back a moan when those delicate lips pressed against her own and the intoxicating feeling of skin touching skin registered in her head as her body lowered onto the girl beneath her; Hermione was so warm and had a body that was just begging to be touched so she moved her hand from next to Hermione's head to do just that. Her fingertips trailed up the bookworm's side, causing goosebumps to follow close behind and Hermione to arch into her so she could feel how much the war hero wanted her and it was enough to almost drive her to the brink of insanity.

Hermione deepened the kiss while Fleur's fingertips trailed back down and the blonde ran her tongue along her lower lip before breaking from the kiss to bring her attention to the brunette's collar bone. She bit down ever so slightly before dragging her lips to the juncture just below Hermione's jaw and neck while she grabbed Hermione's tight butt, pulling the prodigy impossibly closer.

Fleur could hear Hermione's breathing becoming more ragged as she slid her hand from the firm flesh to her inner thigh. Her heart started pounding faster and faster in her ears as she grew closer to her goal, something she had waited for for so long and when she finally reached the apex of Hermione's thighs she paused to look at the Gryffindor one more time, giving her yet another chance to change her mind, but Hermione just smiled and nodded her head.

Fleur didn't need any more signs so in one swift movement she swooped back in to capture Hermione's lips in a deep kiss as she pushed two fingers into the virginal flesh. Hermione gasped a little into the kiss, making Fleur pull away with a worried look in her glowing orbs.

"I-it's okay." Hermione blushed. "Just hurt a little."

Fleur was shocked at the revelation, she in no way thought she would be capable of breaking the girls hymen without the use of spells, but it would seem even she was misinformed. "Do you want me to stop?"

"You better not." Hermione grinned as she pulled the blonde back down into a passionate kiss, moving her hips to encourage the champion to continue on, but Fleur really didn't need much encouragement.

Now that Fleur knew Hermione was okay she had no intention of holding back, she had been waiting too long to do that, but she knew how to ease any pain or discomfort the girl may be experiencing so she placed her thumb on the brunette's tight bundle of nerves as she proceeded to pull her fingers out just to push them back in.

Hermione moaned against the blonde's mouth, gripping the veela's shoulder blades tightly as Fleur worked her magic with her fingers. Hermione herself had been surprised at the slight burn when Fleur had started, but the combination of Fleur moving her thumb against her while pushing her fingers in and out continuously removed any pain she might have felt. Now all she could feel was a slow pleasant pressure building in her stomach as Fleur moved from her mouth to biting her neck, causing a soft hiss of pleasure and pain to slip from her lips. Fleur ran her tongue over the spot recently abused by her teeth while she tangled her free hand in brown locks, her breathing becoming uneven as she moved her body into the girl beneath her.

"Fleur." Hermione moaned out as she scratched her nails down Fleur's soft toned back slowly getting sweatier causing the veela's back to arch, earning Hermione a soft moan in return, and a harder thrust from the French witch.

Fleur gripped Hermione's hair a little tighter, picking up her speed, panting lightly in the prodigy's ear as she curled her fingers at just the right spot that made Hermione squeeze her tighter between her thighs. "Merde 'Ermione . . ." Fleur mumbled into the prodigy's ear. "You feel so good ma belle." She bit on Hermione's earlobe, tugging on the flesh while she moved her hand from Hermione's hair down to her outer thigh, pulling it up to rest against her hip as she continued her ministrations that were driving the Gryffindor insane.

"I think I'm-" Hermione bit her lower lip, closing her eyes tightly as she tried to control her labored breathing while Fleur tried to do the opposite. She wanted to hear the brunette cry out her name, she wanted her to always remember who she belonged to and why. She pushed a third finger inside the brunette, earning her another soft gasp as she started sucking on the girl's neck again. "Fuck." Hermione hissed when Fleur hit a particularly sensitive spot inside of her and moved her thumb just the right way.

Fleur smirked against the flesh, she knew what Hermione was going to say and slowed down just to tease the prodigy. " _ **Are you getting close?"**_

Hermione just nodded her head, biting her lower lip in an attempt to stifle her desperate need for the blonde to go back to the same speed. She ran one hand down Fleur's back and gripped her perfectly sculpted butt, pulling the other girl towards her in an attempt to get her to resume her previous actions which just earned her one hard thrust that made her eyes roll back and then Fleur's fingers were completely gone. Hermione shot her head up in protest, but a languid kiss silenced any thoughts of questioning the blonde and soon those soft pink lips were trailing down to her chest, briefly stopping by her breast to wrap her lips around her nipple and scraping her teeth across it before kissing down to Hermione's ribs.

Hermione could only watch with her chest heaving as Fleur sensually kissed down her stomach then to her hip and then her warm mouth replaced where her thumb had once been, making Hermione's head fall back. She thought Fleur's fingers were magical, but they had absolutely nothing on the veela's perfect mouth and talented tongue currently pushing her closer to the edge. She tried to ground herself by digging her nails into the rock beneath her, but that did little to help her when Fleur flicked her tongue just the right way and proceeded to push two fingers back into the prodigy. The whole feeling was entirely too overwhelming for the golden girl, she had no idea anyone could be that good at doing THAT with their tongue.

Fleur reveled in every little reaction she got out of Hermione with each thrust of her finger or flick of her tongue between the massaging motions she made. Just hearing her girlfriend moan and feeling her writhe from her actions was enough to get her close and was making it harder for her to not just give the brunette the release she so desperately wanted, but she was determined to draw out the moment as long as she could.

Hermione was already getting close again, sweat glistening on her body as Fleur made her teeter totter from almost orgasming to steady pleasure and she just about lost it when the blonde ran her free hand up her stomach only to drag her nails back down. "Bloody Hell." Hermione moaned, hitting her fist on the ground when Fleur found that sensitive spot inside of her once more. "You're going to kill me Fleur."

Fleur pulled away from the task at hand to give the brunette a satisfied smirk. "Oh? Ees zere somezing you want Mademoiselle Granger?"

"You know damn well." Hermione huffed, desperate to be given release.

"Hmmm . . . tell me your mine and per'aps I'll consider eet." Fleur purred, bringing a new heat between Hermione's legs.

"I already-"

Fleur interrupted the brunette's tirade with one slow lick that made Hermione moan and lean her head back, but stopped right after with an expectant look in those glowing orbs.

"A-Alright." Hermione breathed out. "I'm yours."

"Always?" Fleur asked as she crawled up the prodigy's sweaty body, looking meaningfully down at amber eyes that were glossed over, but in a turn of events Hermione quickly flipped them so she was straddling the veela with wide blue eyes looking up at her and pinned her hands above her head.

Hermione just grinned down at the stunned girl as she leaned forward so their faces were just an inch apart with a mischievous glint in those golden eyes. "Always."

Fleur's heart fluttered in her chest at how easy it was to say those words with the golden girl, but before she could think too much on it Hermione leaned in the rest of the way, capturing those pink lips in a softer more thoughtful kiss while she moved her right hand down Fleur's toned stomach to between her own legs to get to where she needed to. She deepened the kiss, intertwining her fingers with the blonde's as she pushed two fingers into her, earning the golden girl a moan of appreciation against her lips.

Hermione pulled away just a bit to see the blissful look on the veela's face as she moved inside of her and she swore in that moment there was nothing more beautiful than Fleur Delacour in the throes of passion. Foggy neon blue stared back up, desperate for her own release, squeezing Hermione's hand tighter asking a non-verbal question to which Hermione was happy to comply.

She released Fleur's hand as she sat up straight, her hips starting to move of their own accord, helping move her hand and creating enough friction that it made her bite her lower lip to refrain from moaning. Fleur was once more in awe of the girl above her; anyone who called Hermione Granger frigid had obviously never gotten anywhere near to intimate with the girl because the way the prefect moved her hips so slowly yet sensually was far from virginal.

"'Ermione . . ." Fleur breathed out as her now free hands found their way to Hermione's hips, gripping them tightly so she could better feel the other girl's movement. She dug her nails in a bit when the Gryffindor took a note from her own book and pressed her thumb where Fleur had pressed hers before, bringing the veela a whole new wave of pleasure.

Fleur threw her head back in response, her breathing becoming uneven as Hermione continued her slow torturous movements, but a hand on the back of her neck brought her to sit up so the brunette could steal what little air she had left straight from her lungs with a hungry kiss. Fleur happily reciprocated, slipping her tongue into her girlfriend's mouth while she moved her hands to Hermione's firm butt, squeezing the soft flesh in a way that made Hermione arch into her. Before she could get too lost in the kiss though Hermione suddenly pushed her back down so she was lying flat on her back, making the veela in her crow its approval at the rough treatment.

It would seem Hermione Granger was taking control, but Fleur wasn't one to be outdone so she brought one hand to the top of Hermione's stomach, slowly raking her nails down the sensitive skin once more. She could see golden eyes almost roll into the back of her head at the feeling and continued going until she was able to slip her hand between Hermione's legs and slide two fingers into the Gryffindor.

Hermione moaned at the feeling, falling forward and placing her free hand next to Fleur's head as she started to move her hips at a quicker pace. Her breaths came out in quick pants and she almost came the second Fleur moved her thumb back into position; she was getting so close and by the unintelligible French Fleur was starting mumble, it would seem she was too.

She brought her lips to veela's neck, sucking on the sensitive flesh, but when Fleur managed to hit a certain spot inside of her again she had to bite down hard on the blonde's shoulder to stop herself from orgasming; she was determined to make the other girl come first. Fleur was having the same struggle, especially when the prefect bit into her, she always knew sex with Hermione would be great, but she had no idea the other girl would be able to do this to her.

They were both so close, but both stubbornly holding off as best they could to try to make the other come first. Fleur was so close to breaking the damn, but a moan slipped from Hermione's lips and the golden girl spoke through quick breaths. "F-Fleur, I can't . . . I'm going to-"

Fleur was quick to flip them over and take control again, moving into the Gryffindor while Hermione continued her ministrations that made it insanely hard for the veela to focus on the task at hand. She was moving frantically now, knowing Hermione was so close to release and so was she. She fell forward a bit, her forehead resting on the ground next to Hermione's head so she could feel the Gryffindor's labored pants against her ear. She felt Hermione's free hand desperately grip her upper back, her nails digging into the skin and then all it took was Hermione crying out, "Fleur." as her orgasm hit her for the champion to come undone too.

Fleur clenched her eyes tightly closed as wave after wave of the orgasm hit her, making her cry out any and every curse word she knew in her mother tongue. Hermione just bit into the other girl's shoulder, trying to muffle her own cries as her nails dug so hard into Fleur's flesh there was sure to be blood, but both were in such a state of bliss they couldn't even begin to think of such things.

After a minute both of their orgasms subsided enough for them to come back to reality, both sweating and breathing heavily as they tried to catch their breath. The couple shuddered as they slid their digits out of the other and Fleur went to push herself up more, but her shaking arms wouldn't allow it and she fell down onto the prefect.

"Merde . . ." Fleur breathed out heavily while Hermione simply nodded her head in agreement, still in her state of bliss. "Je suis désolé. I'm sure I am 'eavy, but I can't move right now." Fleur mumbled while Hermione just smiled.

"No, you're not heavy." Hermione laughed as she started gently running her fingertips up and down the blonde's back in a soothing fashion, something no one had ever done for her, especially after the act. "And I like laying like this. You're warm."

Fleur swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded her head. "Zen I won't move." She smiled lightly, burying her face in Hermione's neck.

She was so tired and comfortable that she was afraid she was going to fall asleep and Hermione running her fingertips up and down her back was certainly not helping matters, but a soft nudge stopped that from happening.

"I don't think we should sleep here."

"Why not?" Fleur whined, nudging her nose more into Hermione's neck. "I'm comfy 'ere."

Hermione just laughed in response. "I'm sure you are, but this rock is going to murder my back if I fall asleep here."

"Alright, alight." Fleur sighed as she slowly brought herself to sit up, her muscles still shaky from their previous activities. "You make a good point."

"I always do." Hermione smiled as she flicked the blonde's nose and stood up, stretching out her overexerted muscles.

"Where are you going?" Fleur asked with a tilt of her head, admiring Hermione's hourglass figure from behind.

Hermione just looked over her shoulder with a smile. "Swimming of course. I need to wash this sweat off."

"Am I invited?" Fleur asked as she stood up, taking a step closer to her girlfriend and leaning in to kiss her only for Hermione to duck out of the way, sending the veela tumbling into the warm water.

When she broke for air she found the other girl was already treading water in front of her and laughing. "You're the guest of honor."

"You're going to regret zat." Fleur smirked as she lurched forward and Hermione swam away as fast as she could to escape the champion's wrath.

/

After swimming for a little while the two finally got dressed and headed towards the carriage, smiling from ear to ear. When they reached the front door Hermione squeezed the blonde's hand and was about to say goodnight, but was cut off.

"Stay ze night." Fleur spat out, blushing lightly at her outburst.

"Is that what you want?" Hermione smiled serenely at the French witch who nodded her head in response. "Alright. Shall I sneak in through your window?"

"I doubt anyone ees up." Fleur smiled triumphantly as she opened the carriage door, carefully leading her girlfriend down the hallway, and making it to her room with no encounters. "See, everyone ees-"

Fleur was suddenly turned around and kissed hard by the prefect before she was walked backwards to her desk. She had no idea where this sudden passion came from, but Hermione Granger was always full of surprises and she had no urge to fight the fire building in the pit of her stomach once more as Hermione grabbed her by the back of her thighs and lifted her onto the desk.

She managed to pull back for air to see amber eyes sparked with intensity. "And zey say veela's are insatiable."

"I don't know the meaning of the word." Hermione grinned as she swept in to capture already swollen pink lips in a needy kiss as she gripped the blonde's hips and pulled her to her roughly. It would seem the bashful Hermione Granger Fleur knew was gone and she was in for a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaand there goes Hermione's virginity haha Hope you guys liked the chapter :D


	26. I Want You To Want Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For musical inspiration, the song Play With Fire by Sam Tinnesz helped grease the wheels, then for the middle part the song Without Me by Halsey super got the feels going and then last but not least I Want You To Want Me covered by Children of Paradise.

The birds were chirping as Fleur stirred from her deep sleep, feeling her sheets wrapped around her nude figure slide off her as she rolled over to feel a warm body next to her equally as naked. Her eyes fluttered open and a smile formed on her face when she took in the image of the morning light streaming in through her window onto Hermione Granger's tan bare back. Soft golden-brown locks slightly hid the prefect's face as she gripped the sheets in her hands while Fleur ghosted her fingers down the silky soft skin of the war hero's back. She couldn't help but admire the dip in Hermione's lower back followed by her shapely butt that the sheets were sliding off of, giving her the best view in all of Hogwarts.

Her fingertips trailed from Hermione's lower back back up to between her shoulder blades while she watched the small muscles in the prodigy's upper back tense a little as Hermione woke from her peaceful slumber.

"Good morning chérie." Fleur smiled as she moved some strands of hair from Hermione's face so she could see sleepy amber eyes looking back at her, completely content from the activities from the night before. "'Ow are you feeling?"

"Great." Hermione grinned back. "A little sore, but I suppose that is to be expected."

"Je suis désolé." Fleur frowned as she scooted closer to the golden girl, placing a soft kiss on her girlfriend's shoulder. "I did not know zat would 'appen."

"Me either." Hermione yawned. "But it's really not that bad."

"Oh?" Fleur raised an eyebrow as her eyes drifted down Hermione's perfect body to see the sheet slipping further down. "We should still get you a potion for zat . . ." She spoke absentmindedly, completely distracted by the skin being exposed.

"Fleur Delacour!" Hermione laughed when she caught the blonde's lingering gaze. "You can't be seriously coming back for ANOTHER round."

"I can't 'elp eet." Fleur pouted. "I 'ave a very beautiful, very naked woman lying next to me and I believe eet was you who was ze insatiable one and 'ad me on ze desk . . And ze floor . . . and-"

Hermione rolled her eyes with a smile. "Alright, alright. You proved your point." Hermione rolled onto her back and stretched her arms above her head to alleviate her aching muscles before she hopped out of bed, leaving Fleur to gape at her hourglass figure from behind.

"Where are you going?" Fleur asked when she felt coherent enough to speak and grabbed the prefect's wrist so she could pull her back into bed and have her wicked way with her again.

"I need a shower." Hermione laughed as she freed herself and leaned down to place a lingering kiss on the champion's waiting lips.

Fleur tried to lean up and put her hand behind the brunette's head to get her closer, but Hermione pulled away before the kiss could go too far, leaving the veela pouting once more. "You are too cruel 'Ermione Granger."

"That's why you love me though." Hermione replied with a wink that left Fleur wondering where her sweet innocent virgin went as she watched the prefect disappear into her bathroom, the events from the night before running through her mind leaving a dopey smile on her face, but the sound of her shower being turned on snapped her from her daze.

She quickly scrambled to her feet, rushing to the bathroom to see Hermione was already enjoying the warmth of the water. The cold tile on her feet didn't even bother her as steam rolled out from behind the curtain and she watched the silhouette of Hermione Granger running soap through her hair. Her eyes started to subtly glow as she took in the perfect figure of her girlfriend and before she knew what was happening her legs started moving on their own accord.

Hermione turned around with a raised eyebrow when she heard the telltale sign of the curtain opening and Fleur made her way into the shower. "And what do you think you're doing?"

"Eet will be faster eef we shower togezer." Fleur tried to appear innocent while she stood there admiring the soap sliding down Hermione's wet toned body, but Hermione could see her blue eyes starting to glow brighter and brighter by the second.

"Your eyes could light up London with how brightly they're glowing right now Fleur." Hermione laughed. "You're not fooling anyone."

"Good, so I can drop ze charade zen." Fleur smirked as she tangled her hand in wet brown locks and captured the brunette's lips in a searing kiss that made Hermione's knees go weak.

"Fleur . . ." Hermione weakly tried to protest when the veela's lips found their way down to her pulse point, sucking on the flesh as the foreigner stepped forward so they were both under the warm water. "We don't have time . . ."

"Don't you remember 'Ermione?" Fleur pulled away while Hermione looked at her with a furrowed brow.

"Remember wha-" Before Hermione could get the question out Fleur quickly flipped her around and pressed her front to the cool tile on the wall and gripped her hip, pulling Hermione's perfectly sculpted butt she spent all morning admiring into her as she brought her pink lips up to the Gryffindor's earlobe.

" _ **I only need but a moment to leave you satisfied."**_ Fleur emphasized her point by biting down on Hermione's earlobe in a way that made the prefect shudder while her right hand snaked its way to Hermione's breast, gripping it in her hand while her thumb ran over the excited girl's nipple. "But eef you don't zink we 'ave time zen-" Fleur started to pull her hand back, but Hermione was quick to grab it and return it to its rightful place.

"Don't you bloody dare." Hermione spoke breathless, making Fleur grin into her shoulder, but the grin was wiped from the blonde's face when Hermione placed her free hand on the tile, pushing herself back and pressing her firm butt back into her crotch, almost making a moan slip from the champion's lips at the unexpected action.

If Fleur's eyes were glowing brightly before, it paled in comparison to the blinding neon emitting from her irises as Hermione helped guide Fleur's hand down her tight wet stomach so slowly it was driving them both insane. Fleur was never a fan of not being in control, but letting Hermione Granger take the reins was entirely too intoxicating to resist so she settled on languidly kissing down the brunette's neck and biting her shoulder. "Je t'aime." Fleur mumbled against the moist skin while Hermione closed her eyes, biting her lower lip as Fleur's hand got closer to where she needed her the most.

"I love you too." Hermione sighed out as she pushed Fleur's hand down between her thighs, once more making the champion wonder what ever happened to the virginal Gryffindor. Who knew that one night with Fleur Delacour was all Hermione Granger would need to blossom; the veela in her felt a sense of pride at that thought alone. She would be the only one who gets to see Hermione Granger like this, no one else and she would make sure it stayed that way.

"Fleur . . ." Hermione practically moaned when the veela's digits came in contact with her tight bundle of nerves that was aching for her lover's touch.

Fleur felt her heart flutter in her chest at the sound of her name slipping from the prefect's lips and almost lost it when she started to move her hand in a slow rhythmic motion and Hermione responded by releasing Fleur's hand in favor of intertwining her fingers in soaking blonde hair. Fleur's veela crowed its approval at the tight grip holding her as close as humanly possible to the Gryffindor while her hand picked up speed, making the prodigy's breath come out in a ragged pants.

Hermione leaned her head forward while Fleur possessively dug her nails into the prodigy's hip who was finding it increasingly difficult to stand while her girlfriend worked her dark magic on her. When the veela started moving her hand at an even quicker pace and scraped her teeth across Hermione's shoulder between kisses Hermione's knees buckled, almost losing her balance as a moan was ripped from her throat.

Fleur could tell by Hermione's shaky legs and her moans becoming more frequent and louder that her lover was getting close to release. Just getting to hear Hermione Granger in the throes of passion made her feel like she was close too, it was an entirely intoxicating feeling she couldn't begin to explain. She felt the fire building in the pit of her stomach growing hotter and hotter as she moved her free hand from the prefect's hip to on top of Hermione's hand resting on the tile while the Gryffindor tugged her hair almost painfully.

A soft hiss escaped Fleur's pink lips at the action and she responded by biting into the brunette's neck just hard enough to make Hermione arch her back into her. She intertwined her fingers with Hermione's as she kissed and ran her tongue along the spot recently abused by her teeth and that was enough to tip the young Gryffindor over the edge.

Hermione cried out the French witch's name as shockwaves coursed through her and her orgasm racked through her body, threatening to rip her apart from the intensity while Fleur continued her relentless assault, prolonging the heavenly feeling while Hermione struggled to stand in her state.

When Fleur felt her lover coming down she slowed her movements while Hermione struggled to catch her breath with a heaving chest.

"Bloody Hell . . ." Hermione spoke breathlessly when Fleur removed her hand and kissed the prefect's shoulder softly.

"I told you eet would take me but a moment." Fleur smirked against the skin.

Hermione turned around and pressed her lips against the champion's in a deep soft kiss before pulling away with a grin. "Cocky git." Fleur opened her mouth to respond, but before she could continue to shower herself with praises Hermione pushed her against the cool tiles. She pinned her there with her body and silenced any words that could possibly come from Fleur's lips with a smoldering kiss.

Fleur's excitement increased tenfold at the rough treatment, digging her nails into Hermione's shoulders and dragging them down in a way that made Hermione shudder.

Their kiss became almost bruising as Hermione pressed more firmly against the veela and pushed her tongue into the blonde's mouth while her hands roamed down her girlfriend's curves. She settled her hands on her hips as she dragged her lips down to Fleur's collar, scraping her teeth across it before she kissed down to her breast.

She briefly placed her lips around a pert pink nipple, flicking her tongue over it, making the veela moan before she continued her descent.

All Fleur could do was rest her head against the cold tile and try to control her ragged breathing as Hermione kissed down her stomach and slowly dropped to her knees; a position Fleur only dreamed she would have Hermione Granger in. "'Ermione . . ." She breathed out when Hermione kissed her hip bone, balling her hands into tight fists at her side to keep herself at bay, but the prefect was making it increasingly difficult with her tongue being used in the midst of her torturous kisses.

Fleur could feel her heart pounding in her chest and felt it lurch in an attempt to flee her body when Hermione swiftly threw one of her legs over her shoulder and grabbed her firm butt with both hands, bringing the veela's lower half to her as she leaned in.

Fleur punched the wall and gritted her teeth when Hermione proceeded to massage her tight bundle of nerves with her tongue. This was something she hadn't explored with the golden girl yet and she was surprised to learn that Hermione Granger's tongue was just as talented, if not more, at going down on her as it was at cutting people down with her sharp wit.

Her fingers found their way into wet brown hair, gripping it how Hermione had gripped her own as she worked her magic on the champion. Despite being worried about being late for breakfast moments before Hermione took her time, moving her tongue in slow languid motions that were driving Fleur mad.

Hermione could sense how to tense her girlfriend was, desperately reaching for her climax that Hermione was dragging out and felt very satisfied with herself that she was able to drive the far more experienced girl mad. She showed some mercy though and picked up the movement of her tongue before she relinquished her hold of one hand on the blonde and instead pushed two fingers into the girl struggling to keep her own balance now.

Fleur started mumbling unintelligibly in French, further exciting the prefect while she gripped Hermione's hair more firmly as she got closer to her release. "'Ermione . . . s'il vous plaît . . ." Fleur finally moaned out, letting go of her pride to get what she needed.

It wouldn't be too hard to tip Fleur over the edge after getting her girlfriend off; hearing Hermione's moans were enough to almost make the veela climax, she just needed Hermione to go a little faster and Hermione was all too happy to comply to the request upon hearing the normally proud champion begging for her release.

Hermione promptly pushed a third finger into her girlfriend, entering the foreigner a little more roughly as she pressed her tongue more firmly against Fleur and moved it a little faster, eliciting a loud moan from the blonde.

"Don't stop . . ." Fleur breathed out, feeling as if she was about to snap and come undone. "I think I'm going to-" Fleur was abruptly cut off by her own impending orgasm when Hermione flicked her tongue just right and curled her fingers deep inside of her.

Fleur arched her back and leaned forward as the intense orgasm shot through her body, crying out her lover's name as she pushed the Gryffindor's head further into her as she rode out her own waves of pleasure. After a couple moments Fleur slowly came back to Earth and gained a better sense of self as Hermione pulled away, but not before she gave one last slow lick that made the veela shudder.

"Je suis désolé 'Ermione." Fleur breathed out heavily as her chest heaved. "I did not mean to do grab you so roughly."

"It's fine." Hermione grinned as she disentangled herself from the champion and stood up.

Fleur smiled dreamily at the obviously proud prefect. "You are entirely too good at zat."

"What can I say?" Hermione shrugged. "I'm a fast learner. They don't call me the brightest witch of my age for no reason."

"Who ees ze cocky geet now?" Fleur laughed.

"Still you." Hermione dabbed some soap on Fleur's nose with her finger as she smiled cheekily at the champion.

"'Ermione!"

/

The two spent the rest of their shower lathering each other up and playing around until the water ran cold, forcing them from their haven.

Hermione was currently drying herself off as Fleur eyed the naked prefect hungerly making Hermione roll her eyes. "Don't you even dare try to start that again."

"I 'ave no idea what you're talking about." Fleur huffed, putting her nose in the air with a smile while Hermione playfully pushed her before throwing on her clothing.

The sound of students bustling about and heading to the castle drew Hermione's attention to the door, making the Gryffindor sigh. "I suppose I'll be talking my usual exit." She grimaced as she redirected her attention to the window she had fallen out of more times than she cared to admit.

"Just leave wiz me." Fleur shrugged. "Eef anyone says somezing zen I will 'appily put zem back een zeir place."

"As lovely as dealing with your classmates judgemental stares first thing in the morning seems . . ." Hermione smiled as she walked up and pecked her girlfriend on the lips. "I think I'll take my usual route."

"Or . . ." Fleur snatched Hermione's wrist, delaying her departure. "We could just skip and stay een bed all day." She grinned as she pulled Hermione closer to her.

"You really don't give up do you?" Hermione laughed and shook her head, carefully extracting herself from Fleur's hold. "You know I would love to do that, but duty calls."

Fleur pouted at being shut down once more, but soft lips pressing against her own wiped the pout off of her face as Hermione placed her hands on her cheeks gently, letting her lips linger a moment longer before pulling away with a smile. "There will be plenty of time for that later. I'll meet you for breakfast in a couple minutes okay?"

Fleur just dumbly nodded her head with a dreamy smile as Hermione slowly stepped away and checked outside the window before carefully jumping out and much to her surprise she didn't fall this time. Today was definitely her day.

/

Once Hermione was out of sight Fleur went about fixing her hair and makeup, reflecting on their date, the lake, and this morning with a smile threatening to split her face in two. _'Ow did I ever get so lucky?_ ' She thought to herself with a sigh, feeling completely content for once in her life as she opened the door to meet her girlfriend, who she was already aching to see, for breakfast.

She stepped out into the hallway, but paused when she saw Veronique casually leaning on the wall next to her door.

" _ **Morning Fleur."**_ Veronique smiled, acting as if there was no rift between the two. " _ **You look well rested."**_

" _ **What do you want?"**_ Fleur growled, feeling anger replace her bliss.

" _ **No need to be hostile."**_ Veronique put up her hands defensively, trying to show she meant no harm. " _ **I'm just trying to be friendly. I miss you."**_ She sighed, taking a step closer to the blonde who took one back in response, sending a sharp pang into the raven-haired girl's chest. " _ **Come on Fleur . . . this is beyond silly at this point. Let's just forget that stupid thing happened and go back to how we used to be."**_

" _ **How we used to be?"**_ Fleur swatted Veronique's hand away when she tried to touch the ends of her blonde hair. " _ **I already told you I'm not going back and you refuse to accept that."**_

" _ **I-"**_

" _ **Just fuck off already. You're not going to manipulate me anymore."**_ Fleur growled as she stormed past the shocked witch, not even looking back to see Veronique's features harden and her heart shatter.

Fleur's good mood had been sufficiently sullied by the mere presence of Veronique, anger coursing through her veins as she stormed up to the castle, but she felt all anger leave and her heart swell in her chest when she arrived at the great hall to see her girlfriend positively glowing as she chatted with Ginny and her little sister.

"Bonjour ma belle." Fleur smiled, forgetting why she was upset to begin with as she smoothly took her seat next to the Gryffindor. "You look well zis morning."

Ginny turned her attention to the foreigner with a suspicious gaze. "She does, doesn't she."

Fleur simply nodded her head, grabbing some fruit while Odette and Gabrielle watched their alpha curiously; something about her was definitely different.

"So that still leaves the question as to why." Ginny raised an eyebrow while Hermione rolled her eyes.

"What are you on about Gin?"

The chaser leaned in, making Hermione lean back into her girlfriend to get away from her persistent friend. "Where did you disappear to last night?"

"I already told you Fleur and I went on a date." Hermione spoke with raised brows while Fleur had to refrain from laughing at Hermione Granger being intimidated.

"And then?"

Hermione gulped uneasily, blushing lightly under Ginny's gaze. "I turned in early for the night."

"C'est vrai." Fleur shrugged, deciding to finally help the prefect out. "She was a perfect gentleman." Fleur winked at Hermione, making the brunette scowl.

"I don't believe you." Ginny huffed as she sat back and crossed her arms.

"Oh, lay off her Gin." Harry jumped in to rescue his clearly flustered friend. "Let 'Mione have her secrets."

Ginny grumbled her acceptance as she pushed her food around while Odette leaned forward to see the pair with a smile lighting up her face. "'Ow was ze date? What did you do?"

"We went to ze Louvre." Fleur beamed. "Eet was magnifique! Zere was so much beautiful art and 'Ermione was ze best guide. Zen we spent ze day exploring Paris."

"Mozer would 'ave lost 'er mind eef she found out about zat." Gabrielle laughed at the thought of her mother going red in the face from her daughter running around Paris doing Merlin knows what.

"Oui." Fleur grinned back at her sister, sharing in her amusement. "Eet was great."

"Aren't you from France?" Ron asked with a tilt of his head.

"What an astute observation Ronald." Hermione teased, trying to hold back her laughter behind her cup of pumpkin juice, earning her a glare from the red-head.

"Oui." Fleur nodded her head. "But mozer never let us go out and 'ave fun like we did."

"Always 'ave to zink about ze Delacour image." Gabrielle rolled her eyes.

Ron grimaced at the thought of a mother that wouldn't let him go out and have fun. "That sounds bloody awful."

"Eet ees." Fleur sighed. "Or eet used to be." She smiled over at the prefect.

/

The group sat around the table, gushing over the couple's date and were so immersed in the conversation they didn't hear heels clicking up to the table with cold green eyes watching the happy couple with disgust. Veronique had heard their activities that morning through the wall as she waited, inwardly dying and stewing as she listened to their moans and laughter; Fleur really needed to remember to put a silencing spell on her bathroom if she was going to do THAT.

She was beyond broken hearted as she listened to their sweet words and easy banter; that used to be her and Fleur doing that, but now Hermione Granger had taken her spot. She honestly wished they had never come to Hogwarts in the first place, that they never made that bet, and most of all she wished Fleur had never laid eyes on Hermione Granger.

When she had first met Fleur, she had seen someone easy to manipulate, someone weak, but somehow she had fallen in love with the gorgeous veela. Once she had seen the blonde in a different light she knew it would be her and Fleur at the end of the day laughing in bed at their latest conquest and sneaking out to go party, but Fleur was different now and all she wanted was her back. She couldn't live with the thought of Fleur spending her life with someone else so this is why she walked down the great hall, twirling her car keys on one finger with a fake smile now planted on her face. Fleur was sure to hate her for a while longer for this, but she would eventually see that she was indeed right about Hermione Granger.

She had to stop herself from letting out an irritated growl when she stopped to stand behind the pair and she went completely unnoticed, but she kept her composure and smile in tact none the less. "Well, I hate to do this." Veronique sighed, making every head snap in her direction at the table. "Because you know how much I dislike losing to you Fleur."

Fleur finally turned around herself, eyeing the raven-haired girl warily, but when she spotted Veronique's car keys dangling on her finger she felt her heart drop into her stomach. She tried to plead with the wicked witch not to do this with her eyes, but it was too late. Veronique had already made up her mind. "You win." She grumbled, placing the car keys into Fleur's hand, making everyone watch the two skeptically, everyone except Odette and Gabrielle who were filled with as much dread as their alpha.

"Veronique." Odette tried to interrupt the wicked witch, praying she could deter her attention enough to make this stop, but Veronique could not be deterred.

"I have to give it to you though Fleur." Veronique shook her head with a smile as the entire dining hall became silent as a crypt. The students could tell by how tense the air seemed to become that something was happening and they couldn't help but eavesdrop on whatever was happening with Hermione Granger and her new beau. "I really didn't think you'd be able to take Hermione Granger's virginity, but you are much more skilled than I realized. Nothing makes a virgin put out like using the L word though, am I right?" She laughed an almost cruel laugh as she looked from Fleur's frozen face to Hermione's confused amber eyes darting from Fleur back to her.

"What is she talking about?" Hermione looked to Fleur who was frozen to the spot, still trying to process what was happening. "Fleur . . .?"

Fleur turned her bright sapphires to Hermione, dread and sadness filling her arctic eyes at the confusion written on Hermione's face.

"She's joking right?" Hermione tried again, not wanting to believe what she was hearing.

All Fleur could do was sit there with her jaw clenched shut. So many words were on the tip of her tongue; apologies, pleas for her to understand, but all she could do was sit there in silence, too shocked to say anything.

"Fleur . . ." Hermione choked out as tears pricked at her eyes; there was no way this could be happening, but Fleur's silence said more than she ever could, confirming that this was indeed happening. She looked back up to see Veronique watching her with that sinister smile and then looked around to see everyone staring at her wide eyed. It felt as if the walls were closing in on her and it was becoming increasingly difficult for her to breathe with everyone staring at her so intently, some judging while others looked on with pity.

"I suppose an explanation is in order." Veronique spoke up for the blonde. "I'll leave it to you then." She patted Fleur on the shoulder before she made her departure, leaving the entire hall in awe and silence.

Odette was the first to stand, anger flaring in her bright blue eyes as she went after the raven-haired girl while Gabrielle sat rooted to her spot unsure if she should go after her girlfriend or try to help her sister.

Tears sprung into Fleur's icy eyes as she watched the cogs in Hermione's head start turning and was finally spurred into trying to say something when she saw Odette go after Veronique. "'Ermione . . ." Fleur spoke around the lump in her throat, but it was far too late to try to smooth things over as the prefect abruptly stood from her seat, making a hasty retreat. "'Ermione! Wait!" Fleur quickly stood up and went running after the Gryffindor trying to escape, not even paying attention to the heated glares she was receiving from Hermione's friends.

Tears were now freely running down Hermione's face as she made it outside, desperate for some fresh air and to get away from all of those stares, but a hand quickly snatched her elbow before she got too far outside. "Don't touch me!" Hermione yelled as she yanked her hand out of the veela's grasp she knew it to belong to.

"'Ermione, s'il vous plaît . . . let me explain." Fleur pleaded with the Gryffindor, desperate to make things right.

"What is there to explain!?" Hermione whipped around, anger now flaring in those golden eyes. "That you used me? Manipulated me for your own sick fun? You lied to me Fleur! I . . ." Hermione looked down, clenching her fists tightly as her tear drops slid off her face and hit the ground. "I trusted you." She spoke quietly this time, making Fleur's heart shatter.

"Ma belle, eet eesn't what you zink eet ees."

"Oh?" Hermione kept a steady calm voice now as she lifted her gaze and burning amber clashed with broken blue. "So, you didn't make a bet that you could take my virginity?"

"Well . . . Non . . . I did, but-"

"I should have never trusted you." Hermione took a step back, wrapping her arms around herself. "How could I be so stupid?"

"You're not stupid." Fleur stepped forward, trying to place her hand on Hermione's shoulder but Hermione was quick to slap it away before she could touch her.

"I said don't touch me." Golden eyes flashed dangerously, making Fleur inwardly cringe at her harsh tone.

"Just listen to me zen . . . s'il vous plaît . . ." Fleur spoke brokenly, trying to keep her own tears at bay. "I made zat stupid bet before I ever met you, but I ended eet a while ago."

"Bullshit." Hermione spat. "How else would she know what we did last night?"

"I-I don't know 'ow she figured zat out, but I swear I did not tell 'er. We stopped talking because I ended zat bet."

"More lies." Hermione gritted her teeth, stepping back even further from the veela.

"I swear eet ees ze truz." A tear finally slid down Fleur's cheek as she took another tentative step forward in an effort to get closer, but each step forward she took was met with a step back from Hermione. "You 'ave to believe me. I love you."

"I told you things I had never told another soul . . ." Hermione looked off to the side, painfully gripping the jewelry hanging from her neck. "I showed you the parts of me I was too scared to show anyone else . . . and you . . .you lied to me . . . you used me . . . and for what?" Hermione closed her eyes, trying to compose herself, but the task was impossible. "A fucking car!?" Hermione's eyes snapped open as anger took over once more.

"'Ermione." Fleur cried at seeing the necklace she had gotten the prefect being tugged at so hard it was about to be ripped off. "I-"

"Is that what my virginity was worth!?" Hermione shouted. "A bloody car!? You ripped away my dignity and used me for literally no reason except your own amusement. You're even more twisted than I thought possible."

"I ended eet 'Ermione." Fleur weakly tried to defend herself, but anything she said fell on def ears.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Hermione asked quietly as she fell apart more and more by the second. This whole situation didn't even feel real, it felt like a really bad dream, but the jewelry being painfully clutched in her hand reminded her this was indeed reality.

"I-I don't know." Fleur looked down. "But p-please 'Ermione, give me a chance to-"

"Give you a chance to what? Fill my head with more lies? To laugh at me behind my back?"

"Non, eet eesn't like zat." Fleur desperately cried out. "You 'ave to understand, I wanted to tell you, but-"

"I don't want to hear another word from you." Hermione shook her head, sniffling as she took another step back. "I don't want your fake apology. I don't want to see you ever again, I don't want you to touch me or kiss me and I don't want your tainted necklace." She emphasized her point by ripping the jewelry from her neck and throwing it at the shell-shocked veela. "I don't want anything to do with you. We're done."

"Please don't say zat 'Ermione . . . I'm begging you." Fleur tried to close the distance, but Ginny, Harry, Ron, and Gabrielle came outside. The red-heads had a murderous look in their eyes while Harry looked disappointed. Gabrielle had tried to keep the trio at bay so Fleur would have time to talk to Hermione, but the bookworms fierce friends couldn't be kept away for long.

Hermione looked off to the side as a sob escaped her lips. "Just go away."

The sight and sound of Hermione Granger crying was ripping Fleur to shreds; she had done this to the only person she had truly loved and it was the worst feeling in the world to see her so torn apart. "'Ermione, you 'ave to believe me-"

"You heard her." Ginny growled, taking a threatening step towards the champion. "Get out of here."

"Non." Fleur clenched her jaw as tears silently streamed down her face. "I love you 'Ermione and I swear I'm telling ze truz. I ended zat bet. I wanted to tell you so many times, but I was so scared of . . . zis."

Hermione just crumbled in on herself, her heart painfully thudding in her chest as more tears wet her face. "How can you possibly expect me to differentiate the truth from your lies?"

Fleur opened her mouth to reply, but nothing came out. Hermione was right. How could she possibly expect her to believe her when she spoke so often to her with half-truths and full lies? "I don't know . . ." Fleur looked down and her shoulders slumped in defeat.

"Come on 'Mione . . ." Ron spoke softly to his friend, putting an arm around her. "Lets get you out of here, yeah?"

Hermione immediately clung to her friend, burying her head in his shoulder and nodding her head as the two boys started to lead her away. Fleur made a move to follow, but Ginny was quick to step in her way. "You've done enough." Ginny glared at the broken veela.

Fleur watched over Ginny's shoulder as Hermione and company disappeared inside, desperately wanting to follow, but knew nothing good would come of it so instead she picked up the broken necklace laying at her feet while Ginny shook her head sadly, leaving to follow her friends.

Gabrielle walked up to her sister, placing a hand on her shoulder as Fleur clutched the necklace close to her chest and fell to her knees, the reality of the situation hitting her full force as she burst into sobs while Gabrielle dropped to her knees in front of her sister, pulling the older girl into her shoulder to cry. " _ **It's going to be okay Fleur . . . you'll see. She just needs time."**_ Gabrielle tried to sound reassuring, but even she was unsure as to how things were going to turn out for the pair.

/

Odette was seething as she looked around for the raven-girl who threw a grenade and just ran, leaving her and the couples friends to try to deal with the damage. She had always feared Veronique would do something like this, but she had always thought she would much prefer to stay on Fleur's good side; it would seem she was wrong.

It took her a good ten minutes to find Veronique, but when she did she found her lounging in the foyer of the carriage. ' _Coward.'_ Odette thought to herself with a growl; the wicked witch had obviously chosen to stay in the open where she thought she would be safe.

" _ **What the fuck is wrong with you!?"**_ Odette yelled, but Veronique didn't even flinch.

" _ **What do you mean?"**_ Veronique asked as she casually flipped the page of the magazine she was reading.

" _ **Drop the act."**_ Odette grumbled as she yanked the magazine out of Veronique's hands, tossing it off to the side. " _ **That was low, even for you."**_

Veronique rolled her eyes, seeming far from bothered by Odette's actions. " _ **Little miss goody two shoes deserved the truth."**_

" _ **That's not what that was about."**_ Odette took a threatening step forward, her eyes glowing. " _ **You humiliated Fleur and probably ruined their relationship. Fleur was going to tell her."**_

" _ **Oh, please Odette."**_ Veronique scoffed as she stood up. " _ **If you think Fleur was really going to tell that girl the truth then you're more naïve than I thought."**_

" _ **She was."**_ Odette stepped into the other girl's personal space, her own veela demanding Veronique pay for what she did to her alpha and her friend. " _ **You just couldn't stand seeing her happy. You want her to be miserable like you."**_

" _ **Careful now."**_ Veronique growled at the red-head becoming more aggressive. " _ **Are you suddenly unaware of what we do now? Of all the things Fleur willfully participated in? She's no angel. You knew about this bet and how Fleur is all along. You could have done something too; you could have tried to get her to tell Hermione the truth, but you sat idly by. You knew this was inevitable."**_

" _ **You did this to her."**_ Odette glowered at the other girl. " _ **All of it. I know it was you. I know you're the one who . . ."**_

" _ **The one who did what?"**_ Veronique challenged the veela, daring her to say what was on the tip of her tongue. " _ **If you know it was me then why haven't you told Fleur hmmm?"**_ Veronique tsked and shook her head. " _ **Looks like Fleur and I aren't the only ones who have secrets."**_

" _ **What is she talking about?"**_ Gabrielle asked with a furrowed brow with Fleur in tow. Both of their gazes were murderous and focused on Veronique.

" _ **You . . ."**_ Fleur's eyes started to glow, her sorrow forgotten when she saw Veronique's trademark smirk sitting on her face. " _ **You ruined everything!"**_ Fleur went running at the raven-haired girl, but Odette was quick to grab her alpha, trying to hold her back.

" _ **Fleur, stop! She's not worth it."**_ Odette pleaded with the inconsolable champion.

" _ **I don't care!"**_ Fleur yelled, trying to get past the red-head, barely holding her at bay. " _ **I'm going to kill her! She was everything to me and you ripped her away!"**_

" _ **You did that yourself."**_ Veronique spat, feeling brave under Odette's protection while Gabrielle watched her girlfriend curiously, completely stuck on what she had heard when she walked in.

" _ **Odette . . ."**_ Gabrielle spoke firmly, drawing her girlfriend's attention. " _ **What do you know?"**_

Fleur paused her angry tirade for a moment when she felt the waves of shame coming off of Odette. Glowing neon eyes flicked from Odette's slumped shoulders to Veronique's smoldering gaze, daring the other girl who she saw as weak to speak up; something she knew Odette wouldn't do.

" _ **I . . ."**_ Odette choked on the words; she really didn't want to be the person to tell Fleur all of these things. " _ **I don't know anything."**_ She mumbled.

" _ **See?"**_ Veronique smirked. " _ **Sweet little Odette doesn't know a damn thing. She just needs to learn to keep her-."**_

Odette turned and threw a right hook so fast Fleur and Gabrielle weren't sure they saw it until they heard Veronique hit the ground and saw Odette shaking her hand in the air after such a hard punch. " _ **Fuck you."**_ Odette spat out before she turned her attention back to Fleur. " _ **It's all her fault . . . everything . . ."**_

Fleur furrowed her brow in confusion. " _ **I know that. I was there-"**_

" _ **No."**_ Odette shook her head. " _ **You don't understand. It was her."**_

" _ **Odette! Shut the fuck up!"**_ Veronique growled as she got to her feet, but Gabrielle was quick to pull out her wand and aim it at the other girl.

" _ **Shut up and let her finish."**_ Gabrielle spat venomously.

" _ **She was the one . . ."**_ Odette let out a sigh, working up the courage to finally tell Fleur something she had held as a secret for so long. " _ **She was the one who told the entire school about you and Thomas. She spread the rumors. I also have a sneaking suspicion she was the one who spread the rumor about you going to the Yule ball with that boy and she specializes with love potions. She drugged Hermione and Viktor. It was her. Everything."**_

" _ **What . . .?"**_ Fleur asked with the same look Hermione bore when Veronique exposed her.

" _ **That's bullshit."**_ Veronique spat. _**"It was that Pansy bitch who drugged Hermione and Viktor**_ _ **."**_

_**"And I wonder who planted that idea in her head and gave her the potion."**_ Odette countered while Fleur stood stalk still for a moment, letting the information sink in before she finally snapped.

" _ **You fucking bitch!"**_ Fleur yelled when everything finally clicked in her head and stormed up to the raven-haired girl, giving her another hard punch across the face that sent her ex-bestfriend stumbling to the ground. " _ **You were supposed to be my friend! But it was you! You ruined my life! You made me into this monster! You made me think I couldn't trust anyone when it was you who I should have stayed away from!"**_

" _ **Fleur! I only did those things to help you!"**_

" _ **Help me!? How!?"**_

" _ **Well, it didn't start out that way, but Fleur . . .I love you."**_ A tear fell from Veronique's eyes as she stood back up, desperately grabbing Fleur's hands. " _ **Don't you see that we're supposed to be together!? It was always meant to be me and you together in the end. Not that Granger girl. I only intervened so you would see how she really is so you could come to your senses and come back to me."**_

Fleur pulled her hands away from Veronique's with disgust written all over her face. " _ **You don't know what love is."**_

" _ **Please Fleur. Just give me a chance."**_

" _ **I will never love you."**_ Fleur took a step back, gripping the necklace she gave Hermione tightly in her hand. " _ **I love Hermione, only her and you . . . you ripped her away from me. You turned my entire world upside down all while pretending to be my friend. You never wanted me to be happy . . . you just wanted to own me . . . like another one of your objects. You make me sick."**_

" _ **No, you don't mean this!"**_ Veronique yelled out, losing her composure she tried so hard to keep in tact. " _ **You don't love her! It's me you want Fleur! Can't you see?"**_

" _ **The only thing I want from you is for you to stay the fuck away from me."**_ Fleur hissed. " _ **And you . . ."**_ She turned her attention back to Odette who looked guilty. " _ **How could you not tell me . . .?"**_

" _ **I didn't know how Fleur . . ."**_ Odette looked off to the side. " _ **How was I supposed to tell you your best friend was the one who spread that nasty rumor? I thought it was something that could be looked over since it was in the past, but I know now it was a mistake. I'm sorry Fleur . . . I never wanted to see you hurt like this . . ."**_

Fleur looked down, tears spilling from her eyes once more. " _ **Guess the jokes on me then huh?"**_ She furiously wiped away her tears.

" _ **Fleur . . ."**_ Veronique tried again, but Odette got in her way with a glare.

" _ **I should have said this a long time ago, but I'm saying it now. Stay the fuck away from Fleur."**_ Odette spoke through gritted teeth. " _ **I may not have been a good friend before, but no way am I letting you near her again. She deserves to be happy and you . . . you deserve whatever miserable fate befalls you."**_

" _ **Fleur."**_ Gabrielle sighed when she saw her sister dejectedly walking away.

Fleur shook her head, signaling for her sibling to stay behind. " _ **I just need to be alone right now Gabrielle . . .I have to . ."**_ Fleur choked on the words in the throat, remembering the broken look Hermione wore, not even caring to think about herself in this moment anymore. " _ **I have to figure out how to get her back."**_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Sigh* And things were going so well . . . ;-;


	27. Glowing Eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, as usual, here is some of the music that inspired this chapter. First "Worthless" by Eli then "Her Last Words" by Courtney Parker and then for the end "The Run and Go" and "Glowing Eyes" both by Twenty One Pilots. I do so hope you guys enjoy the new chapter even though we are at a sad point right now.

_'I know there's someone at the door_   
_They called for help, of this I'm sure_   
_But do I want to say goodbye to all the glowing eyes_   
_I'm holding on to what I know_   
_And what I know, I must let go'_

The sun was blaring into the Beuxbatons carriage, it's bright aura seeming to mock the veela as Fleur groggily opened her red eyes puffy from crying the night before. She had had a hard time sleeping, especially since she could still smell Hermione on her pillow, bringing more tears any time she thought she had calmed enough to sleep.

She slowly got out of bed, her body aching all over and her knuckles throbbing from giving Veronique a much-deserved punch to the face. She wished she had given the raven-haired girl a rougher romping, because in all honesty she deserved a lot worse, but Fleur didn't have much fight left in her by the time she had encountered the wicked witch.

She rubbed the abused bones with a grimace as she approached her mirror, looking up for a moment to observe herself and taking in her broken appearance. She barely cared about her disheveled and broken state; it hardly mattered anymore. All that mattered was Hermione. She just wanted her back.

After taking a hot shower that made her feel slightly better Fleur put on her clothes and headed to the castle with her head downcast; her mind groggy and slow, repeating the events from the day before and wondering what she could possibly say to Hermione to get her back when she saw her, but when she arrived at the great hall the brunette was nowhere in sight.

She could feel everyone's eyes on her as she walked in and hear their whispers as she walked by; some were praising her while others shaking their head in disgust. She didn't expect any less.

She begrudgingly took a seat at the Ravenclaw table, glancing over at the Gryffindor table to see Ronald Weasley glaring at her from across the way. ' _I definitely deserve zat.'_ She thought as she looked back down at the food on her plate, pushing it away when the mere thought of eating made her want to vomit.

" _ **Hey Fleur . . ."**_ Odette carefully approached her alpha, taking a seat next to the dejected girl. " _ **How are you holding up?"**_

" _ **What do you think?"**_ Fleur looked up, her normally vibrant blue eyes dull and full of defeat.

" _ **I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."**_ Odette sighed, looking down. " _ **I understand if you hate me and don't want to talk to me anymore. I just wanted the chance to apologize."**_

" _ **It hardly matters now."**_ Fleur mumbled, looking back down at her plate. " _ **All that matters is Hermione and she hates me now . . ."**_

" _ **I don't think she hates you Fleur."**_ Odette frowned, scooting closer to her friend and placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

" _ **Why not?"**_ Fleur grumbled. " _ **I would hate me if I were her."**_

" _ **She's just hurt and confused. It's all one big misunderstanding. Hermione will see that."**_

Fleur looked up with a spark of hope in her arctic eyes at the red head. " _ **You really think so?"**_

A bright smile lit up Odette's face at her alpha's question. " _ **I know so. It may take a little time, but she will. She loves you."**_

Fleur let out a relieved sigh, perking up ever so slightly at her friends words when The Daily Prophet a student was reading caught her eye. She felt her heart sink when she saw a photo of Hermione plastered on the front page and the words ' **Hero to Harlot!'** written in bold. When she heard the student's laughter as he read the article she felt anger flare through her veins and immediately snatched the paper from his hands. The boy looked as if he was about to say something, but when he saw the murderous look in Fleur's eyes he promptly snapped his mouth closed, thinking better of crossing an angry veela.

Her eyes started to glow as they darted from left to right, each venomous word she read making her angrier and angrier by the second. " _ **That disgusting snake!"**_ Fleur spat out as she ripped up the paper. " _ **She can't get away with this!"**_ She stood from her seat, walking as quickly as she could to the owlry with Odette close behind. She was going to have Rita Skeeter's head for this; she wasn't going to get away with smearing Hermione Granger any longer.

" _ **What are you doing?"**_ Odette asked as she watched Fleur furiously scribble on a piece of parchment.

" _ **I'm getting that bitch fired. She can't talk about a student's sex life."**_ Fleur growled.

Odette let out a sad sigh. " _ **But neither of you are underage . . ."**_

" _ **Fuck!"**_ Fleur shouted as she slammed her quill down, making Odette jump. " _ **I don't care. Either way, I'm going to get that woman fired."**_ Fleur found her resolve again, returning to her scribbling before tying a parchment to her owl and sending it to her family's lawyers.

" _ **I can't believe someone would write about something like that."**_ Odette shook her head sadly, looking out the window Fleur stood at gazing at the forbidden forest.

" _ **I thought it was bad when the whole school knew about me . . ."**_ Fleur spoke quietly, looking down as a new wave of guilt washed over her. " _ **I don't think I could have handled it being in the newspapers and the whole world knowing . . . I can't imagine how Hermione feels right now. This is . . ."**_ Fleur choked on the words as a fresh wave of tears started to slide down her face. " _ **This is all my fault."**_

" _ **No."**_ Odette went up and hugged her friend from behind. " _ **You ended the bet. It was Veronique."**_

Fleur shook her head, clenching her hands into tight fists. " _ **If it's all Veronique's fault, then why do I feel so guilty?"**_

/

Fleur kept her eye out for Hermione all morning, but the golden girl was nowhere in sight, leaving her to drag her feet to potions only to be met with the heated glare of Viktor Krum. When he saw the veela he gritted his teeth and stood to his feet, ready to storm over to the blonde, but a firm grip on his shoulder from his friend kept him in place. He looked from his friend shaking his head then to Fleur, a fire burning in his dark eyes before he let out an irritated huff and dropped back into his seat.

Fleur flinched at the reaction, knowing she deserved the anger directed at her from Viktor. The last task was sure going to be far more intense if the other two were in the same arena as her; she was sure they would both be gunning for her after what she did to their friend.

When class started she noted Hermione didn't bother coming to class either and just stared at her empty seat, not bothering to pay attention to anything Snape said.

The rest of the day went about the same way and much to Fleur's disappointment Hermione didn't come to dinner either, leaving her to stare dully at her full plate.

" _ **Fleur, you really need to eat something . . ."**_ Odette gently prodded her alpha.

" _ **I'm not hungry."**_ Fleur grumbled.

" _ **She's right Fleur. You need to eat even if you don't want to."**_ Gabrielle spoke up from the opposite side of her sister. Odette shot her a hopeful look, but was only met with a scowl from the younger Delacour. It would seem her girlfriend was still not talking to her since she found out Odette had held onto that secret for so long.

" _ **Just leave me alone."**_ Fleur snapped as she stood from her seat, heading back to the carriage before she could be force fed by the couple.

/

The next day Fleur still hadn't seen Hermione so she walked down the halls with her head down, ignoring the whispers as she passed until she smelled the familiar scent of lavender quickly pass her.

"'Ermione?" She asked, perking her head and turning around to see the Gryffindor making a hasty retreat. "'Ermione. Wait!" Fleur started to run after the prefect. "I just want to-"

"Oi!" Ginny grabbed Fleur's arm firmly, glaring dangerously at the slightly taller girl. "She doesn't want to see you."

"I just need to talk to 'er."

"Haven't you done enough already? You've humiliated her. The entire world knows about what you did and you have the nerve to try to rub salt in the wound?"

"Non, zat's not what I-"

"Save it." Ginny growled. "You're walking on thin ice as it is. The only reason why I haven't hexed you to next week is because she made me promise I wouldn't, but that doesn't mean I can't be tempted to break that promise."

"I know I deserve eet . . ." Fleur chewed on her lower lip. "S'il vous plait Ginny . . . I never meant for zis to 'appen. I am demanding zat woman be fired for what she said about 'Ermione. She doesn't deserve zis. I just need 'er to know ze truz. I want to tell 'er everyzing. I want to tell 'er I'm sorry."

Ginny just shook her head, releasing Fleur's arm. "It's far too late for that. The damage is done."

"Eet . . . Eet can't be." Fleur choked out, trying to keep her composure, but failing. "I love 'er. I never wanted to 'urt 'er."

"Well you did." Ginny bit out. "Worse than anyone else." She started to walk away, but paused in her steps, turning to look at the broken veela over her shoulder. "You know . . . I was rooting for you Delacour. We all were and you made a fool out of all of us. Congratulations. Hope it was worth it."

Fleur felt her heart throb painfully at the retreating chaser's words, her jaw clenched tightly shut as she fought back another wave of tears. One escaped and she was quick to wipe it away before quickly descending down the stairs to escape the castle and head back to the carriage, but paused when she came upon Hermione once more walking with her head down while Ginny tried to console and distract her from the wicked whispers of their peers.

"I always knew you were a slut at heart Granger." Pansy laughed with some Slytherins as she leaned against the wall. "I'm glad I never fucked you now. Who knows what you have."

Fleur felt her anger flare up at the cruel laughter directed at the already wounded Gryffindor; the way everyone was treating Hermione just brought her back to the incident with Thomas and she snapped. Before any of Hermione's friends could do anything to shut Pansy up she quickly strode over to the dark-haired girl and grabbed her by her robes, throwing her to the ground in one swift movement.

"Oi!" Pansy yelled as she struggled to get back up on her feet only to be shoved back down by Fleur and to be met with dangerously glowing blue eyes.

"You don't talk about 'er zat way you filzy bitch." Fleur growled as she gripped her robes tightly in her hands. Pansy went for her wand but Fleur slapped it out of the other girls hand before she could do anything.

"Chill out Delacour." Pansy sneered. "I'm just saying what everyone else is already saying. Everyone knows she's the school tart now." She smirked over at Hermione watching with broken amber eyes. "I thought you'd be more proud of your work."

"Proud?" Fleur asked with gritted teeth. "Were you proud when you drugged 'er?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Pansy huffed.

"Lying little snake." Fleur spat, her eyes glowing brighter.

"You're the expert on that one." Pansy laughed.

Fleur's anger got the best of her at the sharp jab and lifted her fist to bring it down to wipe that smug look off of the Slytherin's face, but a hand gripping her fist made her stop and look up.

"She's not worth it Fleur." Harry frowned.

"But she-" Harry shook his head, making Fleur stop mid-sentence. She looked back down to Pansy with anger burning in her eyes. "You keep your mouz shut about 'Ermione Granger. Eef I 'ear even a whisper about 'er I will make you and anyone else who dares cross me regret eet." With one final shove Fleur stood up.

Pansy scowled as she grabbed her wand and stood up, unable to let the champion best her in front of her friends. "You won't do shit Dealcour!" She spat out. "It's too late now! Everyone knows Hermione Granger is a slu-"

"Langlock!" Fleur shouted as she spun around, shooting the spell at the dark-haired girl, immediately making Pansy's eyes widened when she realized her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth. Fleur strode back up to the other girl with narrowed eyes, still pointing her wand at her. "Do not push me. You're lucky you still 'ave a tongue right now. Now get out of 'ere."

The group of Slytherins quickly scrambled away and with a sigh Fleur turned around to see amber eyes looking at her with sorrow before turning back to leave. Fleur went to follow, but Harry gently grabbed her arm. "Don't."

"'Arry, you 'ave to get 'er to talk to me . . . please."

Harry just shook his head. "I'm not helping you with this one. I shouldn't even be talking to you Fleur . . . what you did to Hermione was completely vile. I'm sure there's more to the story, but . ." He let out a sad sigh. "I don't think there's any way to come back from this one. The kindest thing you can do now is to just leave her alone."

"But . . ." Fleur swallowed the lump in her throat, looking to where Hermione once stood. This couldn't be the end. "I love 'er 'Arry-"

"I know." Harry rubbed the back of his neck. "That's why this sucks." He mumbled before walking away, leaving Fleur on her own once more.

Fleur just stood there, staring at the ground for a moment as Harry's words sunk in before she shook her head and quickly headed back to the carriage, ignoring the stares from her peers. When she entered the carriage she felt tears prick her eyes once more as she headed towards her room.

" _ **What do you think you're doing?"**_

Fleur paused, her blood running cold when she heard the familiar voice of her mother. " _ **M-mother?"**_ She turned around to see eyes that looked so much like her own glaring at her. " _ **What are you doing here?"**_

" _ **What are YOU doing here? You should be in class!"**_

" _ **I-"**_

" _ **No, I don't want to hear excuses!"**_ Apolline growled as she stormed up to her daughter, gripping her upper arm almost painfully as she pulled her towards the door. " _ **You're going to class and we will talk about what I'm going to do with you after!"**_

" _ **No!"**_ Fleur yanked her arm out of her mother's firm grasp, earning her a scowl from the elder Delacour. " _ **Why the hell are you here!? "**_

" _ **Don't ever talk to me that way."**_ Apolline's eyes started to glow, making Fleur shrink in on herself. " _ **I'm here, because despite my warning you did not stay away from Hermione Granger and now your indiscretions are smeared all across the newspapers!"**_

" _ **I didn't mean-"**_

" _ **Do you have any idea what an embarrassment you have been to me!?"**_ Apolline bellowed, not caring what her eldest had to say, making Fleur's head drop.

" _ **I'm sorry mom. I wasn't trying to embarrass you or the clan."**_

" _ **Bullshit."**_ Apolline scoffed. " _ **Embarrassing me and belittling the clan is like a sport to you. You're lucky I can't pull you out of school, because of this tournament, but you best believe you're coming home the second you are done with the third task. I will not have you make a mockery of the clan and you WILL learn to conduct yourself properly!"**_

_**"I get it okay!"**_ Fleur finally snapped, looking up with unshed tears in her icy blues. " _ **I'm a big fuck up! I understand! You don't need to keep rubbing it in!"**_ Fleur turned sharply on her heel, making a beeline for her room with an angry matriarch close behind.

" _ **Fleur Isabelle Delacour you get back here this instant!"**_

" _ **Just leave me alone!"**_ Fleur yelled as she hastily entered her room, slamming her door behind her, and resting her back against the wood. She closed her eyes, fists clenched tightly and her heart pounding as she listened to the clicking of her mother's heels growing closer until they stopped at her door. She held her breath, waiting to see what her mother would do, wondering if she would break her door down, but instead Apolline let out a disappointed sigh.

" _ **When will you grow up?"**_ Apolline muttered more to herself than to her daughter before walking away.

The tears Fleur had been holding at bay threatened to spill down her face at the disappointment laced in every word her mother spoke, but she held strong until she plopped down onto the bed, burying her head in her pillow, and inhaling the scent of lavender. The familiar scent and the cold pang of loneliness is what finally did the veela in as she gritted her teeth and hot tears spilled down her face. She held the pillow tight to her chest, a pale comparison to how it felt to hold the Gryffindor in her arms, but it was all she had left. Everything was falling apart around her and there was nothing she could do to make things right. Even worse, she was running out of time. She would be leaving in a few weeks and once she left Hermione, the only person she had ever loved, will have completely slipped through her fingers.

/

Hermione felt like a zombie. She went through the motions of going through the day, ignoring the foul remarks or sympathetic looks people sent her way and when she wasn't feeling completely numb she was consumed with a crippling sadness she didn't know how to fight. The school finding out, actually the entire wizarding world finding out what happened isn't what killed her the most even though it was beyond embarrassing and crippling; it was the betrayal. She trusted the blonde as much as she trusted her best friends and she used her.

"It was all fake . . ." Hermione mumbled as she stared at the fire in the Gryffindor common room with dead amber eyes while Ginny huddled next to her, doing her best to cheer up her friend.

"I know you're hurting 'Mione, but you have to stop doing this." Ginny frowned as she put an arm around the brunette. "And I have no love for the girl, but . . ." Ginny sighed, she hated that she was speaking up for Fleur Delacour right now. "I don't think it was all fake."

"Right." Hermione scoffed, but deep down there was a shadow of doubt in her own words as she reached for the necklace she was so used to hanging around her neck only to come up empty. ' _Just another painful reminder of her.'_ She thought to herself as she looked off to the side, covering up her slip up by tugging at her tie, but Ginny saw it anyways.

"Hey, why don't we take a break from sulking and get you something to eat?" Ginny smiled hopefully at the prefect lost in her own thoughts.

"Not hungry." Hermione mumbled, her eyes feeling droopy, but she refused to rest. Every time she slept she felt Fleur's lips on hers, her fingertips trailing up her skin, and then she heard Veronique's cruel laughter.

"Hermione Granger." Ginny scowled, snapping the prefect out of her daze. "Don't make me strap you down and force feed you, because I'll bloody do it."

Hermione cringed at the thought of Ginny spoon feeding her and quickly shook her head. "Okay, okay. I'll try. Just please don't force feed me."

"Why would anyone need to be force fed?" Ron asked as he arrived at the bottom of the stairs to the boys dormitory. The thought of anyone not wanting to eat horrified to the red head and the look on his face showed it, making his sister burst into a fit of laughter and for Hermione to crack the first smile she had in days.

"Good old Ron." Harry laughed as he arrived behind his friend, clapping the elder Weasley on his back.

A confused frown replaced the horror on Ron's face. "What?"

Harry just shook his head, smiling wider when he saw Hermione's shoulders a little less slumped and a little more light shining in those amber eyes that had been hollow the last couple of days. "Come on, let's go get some food."

/

When they arrived in the great hall people murmured as usual, but a sharp glare from Ginny made any people staring quickly look away. Hermione luckily didn't seem to notice this time as Ron went on a rant about the importance of a good meal.

"I would hardly call what you eat a 'hearty meal' Ronald." Hermione rolled her eyes, cracking another smile as Ron looked at her completely shocked.

"It is hearty!" He cried.

"Eating just meat and sugar is not hearty." Hermione scoffed.

"I eat other things than that . . ." He mumbled.

"Do you?" Hermione stopped in her steps, looking at the flustered boy with a raised eyebrow.

"I eat um . . ." Ron struggled to think of anything else he consumed, but floundered causing the bookworm to laugh and pull the taller boy into a hug that confused him and made him blush, but lifted everyone else's spirits. "Mione . . . what are you-"

"Thank you." She mumbled, burying her head in his shoulder and shutting her eyes tightly. She was beyond thankful for some semblance of normalcy back in her life. She felt like her world turned upside down and everyone was constantly talking about her; she already hated being in the spot light and when the article came out she was devastated. She never thought she could be so humiliated and doubted she would ever feel normal again, but it was times like these that made her realize how lucky she was to have the friends that she has.

"For what?"

Hermione just shook her head, squeezing her friend tighter while Ginny piped in. "Just shut up and hug your friend you idiot."

Ron dumbly nodded his head and reciprocated the hug while a pair or blue eyes watched, burning with jealousy.

Fleur gripped her fork tightly as she watched how red the boy had gotten; she knew she was being ridiculous and had no right to be jealous, but she couldn't help the horrible feeling bubbling in her stomach. Ron was indeed Hermione's friend, but she also remembered they used to date and by the look on his face he had more than friendship on his mind.

" _ **Fleur."**_ Gabrielle hissed softly. _**"Knock it off."**_

" _ **Knock what off?"**_ Fleur replied without taking her eyes off the pair now sitting down at the table, gripping her fork so tightly she feared it would break.

" _ **You know damn well what-"**_

" _ **Fleur."**_ Another pair of icy eyes invaded the veela's vision and she was suddenly face to face with her mother strolling down the isles towards the professors. " _ **Is everything alright?"**_

To some it may sound as if Fleur's mother was concerned for her, but she knew better. She was making sure her daughter didn't do anything brash to further embarrass her. " _ **Everything is fine mother."**_ Fleur mumbled, looking back down at her food while Apolline eyed her for a moment, making sure the defiant blonde wouldn't be trying anything and when she came to the conclusion Fleur wouldn't she nodded her head before heading to the professor's table to eat dinner.

A cold chill seem to follow the Delacour matriarch as she walked down the isle, drawing everyone's eyes to the newest addition to the school including the golden trio.

"Who's that?" Ron asked around a mouthful of food.

"I don't know, but she gives me the bloody chills." Ginny replied, shaking and rubbing her arms to prove her point.

Hermione just watched silently as the woman seemed to float to the professor's table and elegantly took a seat. Apolline took a sip of her wine with all the class a woman of her stature possessed while she eyed the brunette, almost seeming to hide a smirk behind the glass that put Hermione's teeth on edge.

Amber eyes turned from those smug blue to the icy ones that still pained her to look at staring dejectedly down at the table. For a moment she almost forgot their circumstances and walked right over to the Ravenclaws. Almost. A sharp pang reminded her of the champion's betrayal and quickly averted her own gaze before she opened a door she really didn't think she would want opened ever again.

"Everything alright Mione?" Harry asked softly in brunette's ear.

"Peachy." Hermione mumbled as she stabbed her salad a little harder than necessary.

Harry eyed the prefect for a moment, wanting to push things further, but when he saw her stab the poor unsuspecting lettuce even harder than the time before he knew it would be best to hold his tongue. ' _I guess we're past the grieving stage now and on to anger.'_

/

The next day in Potions there was a heavy tension hanging in the air as Hermione made her entrance. All eyes turned to the prefect, including pleading blue which she desperately tried to ignore, deep green that wanted to tear her apart limb by limb, and then dark brown that were almost black looking at her with pity. She supposed everyone was wondering how she would act now that Fleur and her were in the same class; no one had seen the two interact since the incident. It irritated her to no end that people were expecting some soap opera performance or some type of show as if her life was a drama for them all to enjoy, but she didn't let that show on her face. She was done sulking, at least outwardly.

She held her head up high and pressed forward to her seat, pretending not to notice all of the looks she received as she placed her things on the desk. She opened up her notebook and readied her quill, trying to appear unbothered by everything as she patiently waited for her friend to arrive late to class as usual.

She sat there, pretending to scribble down notes when handwriting she hoped to never see again appeared on the page.

' _I know you hate me and I deserve it but can we talk? Please?'_

Hermione gripped her quill tightly, tears she thought were long gone threatening to spill from her eyes at such a small interaction with the veela who ripped her heart to shreds. She had so many responses she was itching to write down, most of them vile and cruel, but others more forgiving. She knew she was in no state to begin to even think about talking to the champion and she never knew if she ever would so she just sat there looking at the page.

' _I'm so sorry for everything. Please just give me a chance to explain.'_

Hermione couldn't stop the scoff from coming out of her mouth at Fleur's request. ' _You had every chance to try to explain and now you're trying to put this on me.'_ Hermione thought bitterly before snapping her journal shut and mumbling a spell.

Fleur watched as Hermione sat rigid in her seat and felt her heart drop into her stomach when Hermione snapped her book shut, sufficiently ending her line of communication. She held back the tears that wanted to spill and continued writing anyways, hoping the message would get to the Gryffindor when she opened the book again, but two seconds after the words disappeared from the page they reappeared on her own, mocking her.

' _Please Hermione. I love you and I just want to make things right. Just hear me out and if you decide you still hate me then I'll leave you alone. I promise.'_

It would seem Hermione had just cast a spell that would send whatever she tried to send to Hermione right back to her. She really had no way of communicating with her ex-girlfriend anymore and that thought alone filled her with more dread than she thought possible. She scrambled to come up with anything that would enable her to speak with Hermione, but Harry rushed into the class, breaking her train of thought as she watched Hermione interact with him as if she hadn't just tried to reach out to the prodigy. Hopeless wasn't a strong enough word to describe how the veela felt at being brushed off as if they had nothing together; the sting was so deep she was about to leave the class, but Snape thwarted that plan when he breezed into the room. ' _Just my luck.'_ Fleur thought sourly as she slumped in her seat, unable to keep her eyes off of the love of her life the entire class.

/

The second class was over Fleur made a hasty retreat, heading for the carriage. She knew her mother might be waiting there for her, but she would deal with a tongue lashing from her mother over having to be in the same room with Hermione Granger right now. It was torture being so close, but being unable to communicate or run her fingers through those soft locks she adored or be able to kiss those lips she missed so much. She thought she knew pain after the ridicule Thomas put her through, but that was nothing in comparison to this and she had no idea how to deal with it.

She thanked whatever deity there might be when she entered the carriage she wasn't immediately bombarded by her overbearing mother as she quietly made her way to her room, unwilling to test her luck. Once she was in the confines of her own room she let out a shaky breath and headed straight to the one place she could sort her thoughts out and try to make sense of things. She sat there with a quill in hand, wanting to write something . . . anything to help her get through this but nothing came out and then it hit her.

She tapped her nails on the desk as she eyed the diary; the one thing that damned her could possibly be her salvation, but was she willing to put all of this information in someone else's hands? She had never shown anyone her diary before, but Hermione Granger was hardly anyone and if she wanted to make things right she would have to give the golden girl the truth. The whole truth. The good, the bad, and the ugly. She had no idea how Hermione would respond to it, but she knew Hermione was a woman of books and if there was any way to get through to the prefect it would be through reading. It would allow Hermione time to digest the information and take it in in a way that was comfortable for her. Yes, it was desperate, but this was her best shot and in her heart she knew if anyone deserved to know the truth about her it was Hermione Granger.

" _ **Guess this is my only chance now . . ."**_ Fleur mumbled to herself before undoing the spell she had placed on it and directing her gaze to the clock. It was lunch time and it was now or never.

/

Fleur stood there at the entrance of the great hall, holding the journal snugly under her arm as she willed her pounding heart to calm down, but the task was impossible as she watched Hermione at the Gryffindor table stabbing her food as her friends happily conversed around her. She gulped uneasily as she gathered up the courage to do what she needed to do; there was no way Hermione's friends would let her anywhere near her so she was going to have to do something extreme.

Her eyes briefly flickered over to her little sister and Odette at the Ravenclaw table looking at her with confusion in their eyes; they knew that Fleur was terrified and that something was about to happen but didn't know what. She smiled reassuringly at the pair before she felt another presence across the way that was her mother glaring at her from the professor's table. She could feel her daughter's apprehension and knew she was up to no good so with a simple look she said to her eldest _'don't you dare.'_

Fleur felt her resolve strengthen at the hard look her mother was giving her and squared her shoulders, glaring defiantly back at the matriarch. ' _Watch me.'_ She thought to herself as she stepped up onto the bench of the table and then onto the table itself, marching down the table as if it was a runway.

The great hall became deadly silent and when Hermione heard students from her table protesting and silverware being knocked about Hermione looked up to see Fleur walking down the table, stepping in students food without losing her footing or taking her eyes off of her target. The prefect wasn't even sure what was happening until she saw those familiar blue heels stop right in front of her covered in mashed potatoes, salad, meat, and basically anything anyone was having for lunch.

Amber eyes slowly traveled up slim long legs to shapely hips to Fleur's chest where she hated that she knew a lone freckle resided and the necklace Fleur gave her sat then finally landed on arctic blue threatening to bore a hole through her.

"What the-" Ron started but Fleur paid him no mind as she dropped her journal into Hermione's lap.

"I wasn't lying." Fleur spoke firmly as Hermione looked down at the brown journal then back up to the champion, completely dumbstruck. "I do love you 'Ermione Granger. Eef you want ze truz, ze whole truz . . . zen read my journal. Any questions you 'ave will be answered een zere. I-"

" _ **Fleur Isabelle Delacour."**_ Apolline hissed as she approached the table; she was positively seething that her daughter would pull such a stunt, especially with her there. " _ **You get down from there this instant."**_

Fleur opened her mouth to protest but her mother already leaned past the group of students and grabbed her wrist tightly, making her get down while Ron and Ginny struggled to get out of the way so they wouldn't get stepped on.

Fleur fought her mother's hold while Odette and Gabrielle watched on in shock; they had no idea Fleur would do something like that with her mom so close by. Hermione and company were in a similar state as they watched Fleur rip her wrist from the older blonde's grasp. " _ **Get your hands off me."**_ Fleur growled, shocking her mother at the threatening tone she took on. Fleur and her mother knew it was only a matter of time before she was alpha of the entire clan and she would not be handled that way by anyone, even her own parents; not anymore at least. "'Ermione." Fleur's tone immediately softened as she spoke to the surprised genius looking at her with so many different and conflicting emotions swimming in those golden eyes. "Just read eet . . . s'il vous plaît."

Hermione didn't say anything in response; she didn't know what to say of what to think, but Fleur didn't expect a response so with a simple nod of her head and a smile Hermione hadn't seen in what felt like decades Fleur turned and left with her mother close behind while a pair of burning green eyes watched from the Slytherin table.

"Bloody Hell . . . That was . . ." Ginny started while Ron nodded his head.

"Yeah."

"Hermione . . ." Harry frowned, putting his hand on his friend's shoulder when he noticed her staring intently at the diary filled with all of the answers to her burning questions. "What are you going to do?"

The brunette just gripped the book tighter as her mind battled with itself. "I don't know."

* * *


	28. Lost On You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the music that inspired this chapter; first it was "Lost on you" by LP (I prefer the live performance) then "God Knows I Tried" by Lana Del Rey and lastly "No Good" by Kaleo. I do so hope you all enjoy the chapter; I know it has been a more somber tone lately, but it has been crucial for the story :)

Fleur walked the halls of Hogwarts, books held closely to her chest, deep in thought as per usual these days. It had been a week since her incident in the Great Hall and she had yet to hear a thing from her fiery Gryffindor or receive so much as a look or some sort of clue that she had read her journal. She had played every card in her deck and officially had nothing left. Odette and her sister tried to cheer her up to no avail while Veronique was smart and steered clear of the distraught veela.

"Fleur."

The champion paused in her steps and looked up to see the girl plaguing her thoughts standing at the top of the stairwell staring at her with burning gold eyes and a heaving chest as if she just sprinted the entire castle.

"'Ermione?" Fleur hated how weak her voice sounded when that name slipped from her lips, but she was indeed weak when it came to Hermione Granger.

Hermione didn't say anything; she just closed the distance between them as quickly and gracefully as she could leaving them standing in front of each other. Fleur had no idea what to do and Hermione looked like she was bursting to tell her something. "I read it."

Fleur felt relief and dread fill her all at once; what did Hermione think of her now that she knew everything? Thomas' betrayal, her horrible conquests, her crippling loneliness . . . everything. "Oh?" Fleur had hoped something more clever would come out of her mouth, but that was all she could muster in her flustered state. She hadn't been this close to Hermione in a long time. "What did-"

Hermione suddenly launched herself at the slightly taller girl, pressing her lips against startled pink ones, cutting off the foreigner from speaking further. Fleur felt her heart leap into her throat at the contact, quickly wrapping her shaky arms around the prefect, and returning the kiss she had been waiting for since the bookworm broke things off with her. She meant to deepen the kiss, but Hermione pulled away before she could accomplish that goal, leaving her to look at the other girl dumbly.

"I'm sorry."

If Fleur was confused before, it was nothing compared to now as she furrowed her brow at the brunette. "You are sorry ma belle? For what? I was ze one een ze wrong for doing such a 'orrid zing."

"I'm sorry that awful man did that to you. I'm sorry you had no one there for you when it happened except for that viper. I'm sorry I broke things off." Fleur felt tears stinging at her eyes, but she refused to let them fall as Hermione pressed on. "I love you Fleur." Hermione spoke softly, cupping the blonde's cheek with her hand and wiping away the tear that managed to escape with her thumb. "I love every part of you. The good, the bad . . . everything."

Fleur went to lean in to kiss the Gryffindor as the overwhelming feeling of adoration for the sweet bookworm washed over her, but was stopped by a finger pressed to her lips. Fleur was once more confused, but the smile on Hermione's face soothed her worries as she grabbed the champion by the hand and lead her to the closest broom closet they could find.

The second the door closed Hermione's lips were upon Fleur's soft pink ones, sighing happily into the blonde's mouth when Fleur placed one hand on Hermione's hip and tangled the other one in soft brown and blonde locks she desperately missed running her fingers through.

"Je t'aime." Fleur mumbled in her mother tongue against Hermione's lips. Those words seemed to ignite the already fired up war hero, causing Hermione to deepen the kiss before biting down on Fleur's plump lower lip.

Fleur knew her eyes were surely glowing behind her eyelids at the action, her veela beyond excited to be kissing this girl again. She pursued Hermione's lips when the Gryffindor pulled back teasingly, quickly recapturing those cherry red lips that belonged to her.

A giggle escaped Hermione's mouth, tickling Fleur's lips when the champion picked her up by the back of her thighs and pressed her against the wall like she had in the carriage what felt like a lifetime ago. "You are not allowed to ever leave me again." Fleur growled playfully as she broke the kiss, but kept the prefect pinned to the wall.

Hermione just smiled serenely at her, tucking a stray strand of blonde hair securely behind her ear. "I wouldn't dream of it."

"Good." Fleur smiled back and pressed a soft lingering kiss on Hermione's lips that was much sweeter and softer this time.

"You know . . ." Hermione pulled back and Fleur had to refrain from groaning at the loss of contact.

"Oui ma belle?"

"I have a free period." Hermione wiggled her eyebrows and Fleur was in shock once more.

"Are you saying you want to . . ." Hermione nodded her head. "Here?" Fleur raised an eyebrow and Hermione bit her lower lip as she continued to nod her head, causing Fleur's eyes to glow a brighter blue. Merlin, did she love this woman. "I do not deserve you 'Ermione Granger." Fleur grinned as she dove back in to capture her lover's lips in a deeper kiss. They had a lot of lost time to make up for and Fleur was not going to delay in doing just that.

Hermione sighed against the veela's lips, wrapping her arms around Fleur's neck as Fleur ran her hand up Hermione's inner thigh. She never thought she would get to have Hermione Granger again, especially not like this, but here she was kissing the prefect, inching her fingers closer and closer to where she wanted them most. She wanted nothing more than to be as close to the Gryffindor as possible in this moment; she needed it and by the way Hermione trembled at her touch, she did too.

"I love you." Fleur mumbled again as she kissed down to Hermione's neck, sucking on the flesh as her fingers grazed Hermione's panties, making a sharp gasp slip from ruby red lips.

"Fleur . . ." Hermione spoke breathlessly as Fleur's fingers crept closer.

Fleur's eyes suddenly snapped open as she awoke with a gasp, covered in a light layer of sweat as she sat up in her own bed. Confusion swam in her glowing arctic eyes as they roamed the room and then reality came crashing down on the heartbroken veela. Just seconds ago she felt so elated and now she was hollow and hopeless; it was just a cruel dream meant to further torture her. She didn't bother looking to the clock, she knew it was still far too early for anyone to be up so she simply moved to sit on the edge of the bed and put her head in her hands as tears spilled from her eyes.

/

"Can't sleep?" Ginny asked sleepily as she walked down the steps of the girls dormitories; it was three am and she hadn't seen the brunette come up to bed yet. She had a sinking feeling Hermione would spend another sleepless night in the common room sitting on the couch with the fireplace lit just looking down at the brown leather journal and sure enough there the bookworm was when she descended the stairs.

"No." Was Hermione's simple reply as she gripped the book tightly; it had been a week since Fleur bestowed her most prized possession to her and she still hadn't read it. ' _So much for Gryffindor courage.'_ Hermione thought to herself bitterly.

"Why don't you just read it?" Ginny sighed as she sat down next to her friend. "I know you want to and it might give you some closure."

"I'm scared of what I might find out." Hermione answered honestly, too tired to lie anymore. "I don't know if I can handle it and certainly don't know if I even want to read it."

Ginny watched the prodigy pensively for a moment; she had had this conversation with Hermione about a million times already and Hermione was no closer to so much as cracking the book open. She really didn't care for Fleur, especially after what she did to her friend, but she had to admit that what she did took serious guts and as a Gryffindor she could respect that at least. She knew that Hermione had to make a decision soon though; the other schools would be leaving in two weeks and her friend was no closer to making a decision than she was when she received the book so she did the only thing she thought would help. "Alright." Ginny shrugged as she grabbed the book from Hermione's hands, startling the prefect. "Let's just burn it then."

"What?" Hermione felt her heart drop into her stomach at the thought and when she saw the red-head make a move to toss it in said fire she was spurred into action. "Wait! Don't!" Hermione quickly jumped from her seat, snatching the journal from Ginny's hands and holding it to her chest protectively with her head down. "I'll read it."

Hermione had said the last part so quietly Ginny wasn't sure she heard the brunette correctly. "Really?" Hermione just nodded her head as she bit her lower lip. "Do you want me here while you do?"

Hermione shook her head. "No Gin, you've done more than enough and it's late."

"I don't care." Ginny scoffed. "If you need me, you know I'm here."

Hermione looked up and smiled softly at the caring chaser. "I know. You've been great through all of this Gin and I couldn't ask for more. I think . . ." Hermione looked back down at the book before bringing amber eyes to concerned green. "I think it's better if I read it by myself and have time to digest it."

Ginny nodded her head solemnly in response as she started to head back up the stairs. "Okay, but you know where to find me if you need me."

"Thank you." Hermione mumbled as Ginny disappeared and she sat back down on the couch. She stared at the leather journal for a moment again before she let out a deep breath and reached for the string holding all of Fleur's secrets together, carefully undoing the tie with shaky fingers before opening it.

She wanted to skip to the start of this whole mess, but when she saw the journal dated all the way back to when Fleur was fourteen she couldn't bring herself to skip ahead. She needed to know everything from the very beginning and so she started the emotional task of reading said journal.

She stayed up all night reading the journal, feeling her heart break for the veela as she read her most personal thoughts about what that Thomas boy did to her; the situation was damn near identical to hers. ' _Except Fleur didn't end up in the newspaper.'_ Hermione thought to herself bitterly, but quickly pushed the thought out of her head as she read on. She felt the heavy feeling of disappointment thick in her throat as she read about Fleur's "conquests"; the people she hurt on her journey to protect herself and felt as if she was about to vomit when she came to a particular story of a girl falling hard for Fleur which the champion just found annoying and amusing at the same time. Hermione couldn't ever imagine doing that to someone and then she came to a page labeled "The Bet."

She felt her heart drop into her stomach once more when she realized she had come to her part and didn't know if she was ready to read it, but she swallowed the lump in her throat and continued anyway. She felt dizzy and sick all over again when she read how arrogantly Fleur talked about her; like she was just another trophy to be put on her shelf. She almost closed the book and stopped reading at that part, but something made her keep going.

She flipped the page and felt her heart pound in her chest when she saw her own amber eyes staring back up at herself. She was utterly surprised that that is what Fleur drew of her after seeing some of the more lewd drawings that made her blood boil. She gulped heavily, silently cursing her cheeks for heating up over something so simple and quickly turned the page and continued reading through Fleur's frustrations at her failed attempts to gain Hermione's attention and then further into the book she saw something that brought a smile to her face. It was the drawing of the squid throwing Ginny and Viktor about that she showed her and to this day the photo still made her want to laugh as she gently ran her fingertips over the tentacles of the squid.

She remembered that day quite vividly; it was the first time she and Fleur had a civil conversation and enjoyed each other's company. It was the first time Fleur somewhat opened up to her and sparked the Gryffindor's interest.

She noticed she had started reminiscing a little too much, feeling that euphoric feeling only Fleur could elicit from her and quickly moved on. It would seem Fleur had felt the connection too and had started writing about Hermione differently; she still seemed like a trophy, but there was something hidden in those words showing there might be something more. Then she got to the part where she confided in Fleur about Bellatrix, then their first kiss where Fleur's feelings became much more conflicted and where she apparently did end the bet.

When she turned the next page her eyebrows shot up when she saw a drawing of herself sitting on Fleur's bed with her head in a book taking notes during their first study session. "So that is what she was drawing." Hermione blushed as she spoke quietly to herself. She quickly turned the page, not wanting to dwell on the confusing feelings swimming around inside of her, but what she saw made her brow furrow.

There was a drawing of a very familiar cross necklace she couldn't quite place, but when she started to read the words around the cross a scowl formed on her face. It was about Veronique and the more she read about the raven-haired girl the angrier she became. There wasn't too much written about Fleur's best friend in the book except for the occasional reference and her first entrance when the Thomas incident happened.

She thought what Fleur did was bad, but it was obvious by how Fleur spoke about her 'best friend' that Veronique was far worse. Not only did she thoroughly enjoy hurting people, but she was doing drugs right under everyone's nose. Hermione wasn't sure about what to do with that information. Yes, she was a prefect, but she prided herself in not being a complete narc. She wasn't sure what to do about that horrible girl and it was clear by the way Fleur wrote about her that the champion was unsure as to what to do about her herself.

Hermione just shook her head, deciding she would deal with that later; there were more pressing matters right now so she continued on only to see another drawing of her but this time on the rock in her underwear at the lake. She wanted to cry as she read Fleur pour her heart into the journal, stating her confusing thoughts around the Gryffindor and eventually her love she could deny no longer.

When Hermione was done with the book people were starting to trickle down for breakfast while she just sat there on the couch with a far off look in her eyes. She really had no idea what to make of everything she read; it was all so overwhelming. Fleur loved her; that was no lie, but the blonde specialized in deceit and hurt so many others. She may not have been lying about her feelings near the end, but their foundation of their entire relationship was indeed a lie.

"Hey, were you up all night?" Ginny frowned when she saw the bags under Hermione's eyes.

The prefect numbly nodded her head as she stared into the fire; exhausted, but unable to sleep with all of this information flying through her brain at a million miles per minute.

"Did you read it all . . .?" Ginny asked as she carefully took a seat next to the girl who looked like she was in desperate need of sleep.

Again, Hermione just nodded her head as if she was in a trance.

"And?" Ginny raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know what to think." Hermione finally spoke quietly. "It's a lot to process."

"Maybe you should get some sleep." Ginny frowned, gently rubbing Hermione's back, but the prefect shook her head.

"No. I can't miss class."

"I'm sure it will be-"

"It's fine." Hermione cut the red-head off, making Ginny frown. "I'm fine." Hermione reiterated, giving the chaser a tentative smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

"I don't believe you." Ginny sighed. "But okay."

/

The next couple days went by in a blur for the bookworm; she felt herself dumbly staring every now and then at the veela who looked just as exhausted and worn down as her. Occasionally their eyes would meet; she would feel her heart leap into her throat at the spark of hope in those icy blue depths, but would quickly look away before she let herself get too lost in those eyes. She knew Fleur was dying to talk to her, but was silently appreciative and disappointed at the same time that the champion kept her distance. She wished she could just come to a conclusion on her own, but she was so lost and that's why she found herself at the docks with her feet in the water, staring blankly at the horizon.

"Do you mind eef I sit 'ere?" Came a soft voice and a thick accent.

"It's a free country." Hermione mumbled while Odette kicked off her shoes and sat next to the brooding Gryffindor.

"Did you read eet?" Odette asked carefully.

"Did Fleur send you to find out?"

Odette flinched at the harsh tone that even Hermione was surprised by; she didn't mean to sound so cold and bitter and regretted it when she saw the red-head frowning. Odette had been nothing but nice to her and she was not responsible for her friend's actions.

"Non. I came of my own accord. I wanted to check on you."

"I'm sorry." Hermione sighed, her shoulders slumping from exhaustion and depression weighing heavy on her. "I didn't mean to be snippy. I'm just kind of tired."

Odette nodded her head in understanding, looking out at the lake. "I understand. Fleur 'asn't been sleeping eizer." Hermione turned her head, giving the foreigner a wary look that made her quickly jump to her defense again. "Je suis désolé. Zat ees none of your concern. I am not trying to pull anyzing. I just-"

"It's fine." Hermione mumbled, looking down and chewing on her lower lip with her teeth as she seemed to struggle with something internally. "Did you know . . .?" Hermione asked quietly, not wanting to really know the answer.

Odette gulped uneasily, looking down as shame filled her gut. "Oui."

"I figured." The prodigy sighed, rubbing her face tiredly in a way that made Odette's heart break.

"I'm sorry I didn't say anyzing to you 'Ermione . . . but you can be rest assured I did tell 'er to tell you. She was just-"

"Scared." Hermione finished, startling the veela. "I know. It doesn't change a damn thing though does it?"

"Non." Odette agreed sadly. "Eet does not . . ."

They sat in silence for a good couple of minutes after that, the words weighing heavy on both of them. Odette wanted to say more, but was unsure as to what to say or if Hermione even appreciated her being there. She was about to get up so she could leave the prodigy in peace when Hermione opened her mouth once more.

"I read it." She spoke softly making Odette blink unintelligibly at her.

"Oh?"

"I don't know what to think." Hermione admitted as she gripped the edge of the dock tightly.

"I zink zat ees okay." Odette smiled softly as she placed a calming hand on Hermione's shoulder. "You do not always need to 'ave ze answers. Eet ees okay to not know 'ow to feel."

Hermione just laughed mirthlessly. "I'm Hermione Granger. I'm supposed to have the answers to everything."

"When eet comes to love eet ees far more complicated zan learning a spell 'Ermione." Odette spoke somberly. "You 'ave been put een a very difficult situation."

Hermione just nodded her head, trying to swallow the lump forming in her throat and holding back the tears that wanted to escape her tear ducts. "She's not sleeping either?"

Odette was startled by the question about Fleur, but quickly recovered, hoping to help mend the relationship after what she kept from her alpha. "Non." She shook her head. "She feels awful; I can feel 'er sadness even now all ze way across ze grounds."

"Oh." Hermione spoke in a monotone voice, unsure of how to process that information.

"Listen 'Ermione . . ." Odette decided to push a little bit for her friend's sake. "I know eet ees none of my business, but I know she does love you. She 'as for a long time, she just didn't know 'ow to process eet and had no idea 'ow to do right by you. She tried and she was wrong for what she did; she knows zat. Maybe eef you just talk wiz 'er-"

"No." Hermione spoke firmly. "I can't. Not now at least."

Odette let out a sigh. "I understand. I'm just worried about 'er . . . ze last task ees fast approaching and she eesn't even training."

Hermione scowled, feeling herself bristle at the veela's words. "Are you trying to put this on me? She's the one-"

"I know, I know." Odette put up her hands to show she meant no harm. "I'm just trying to make up for my own wrongs 'Ermione . . ."

Hermione furrowed her brow in confusion at the last statement. "What do you mean?"

"I . . ." Odette bit her lower lip, looking down before meeting perplexed gold. "I'm assuming you know about Thomas." Hermione just nodded her head, feeling a fire build in her chest at just the mention of the wicked man's name. "Zen you know about ze rumors zat spread around about Fleur oui?" Once more Hermione nodded her head, still looking completely lost. "Well . . .Veronique ees ze one who spread ze rumors . . ." Hermione gritted her teeth at the new revelation, feeling her anger and hate for the raven-haired girl build tenfold. Yes, she wasn't fond of Fleur at the moment, but she couldn't help but feel that surge of protectiveness course through her veins at the thought of the betrayal. "I knew . . ." Odette continued on, shame laced in every word. "I never told 'er. I zought eet was so far een ze past when I finally became friends wiz Fleur zat eet didn't matter. Eet obviously did and I finally told 'er after Veronique did zat een front of ze entire school. Zis ees all partially my fault. Eef I 'ad just told 'er sooner she would 'ave never-"

"There's no point in thinking like that." Hermione mumbled, looking down as a new wave of conflicting feelings washed over her. "You're not responsible for Veronique or Fleur's actions."

Odette looked to the prefect with regret and sadness swimming in those bright blue eyes that painfully reminded Hermione of Fleur. "I still could 'ave stopped all zis from 'appening eef I had just done ze right zing."

"The right thing . . ." Hermione sighed as she leaned back on her hands, looking up at the sky cryptically. "I don't even know what that means anymore."

"Me eizer." Odette agreed quietly as she followed Hermione's gaze.

They both sat there quietly, this time in companionable silence as they kicked their feet in the water. Golden eyes shifted over to the red-head seemingly trapped in her own world as Hermione contemplated what she wanted to say. "You know . . . this doesn't change anything. I still don't know what I'm going to-"

"I know." Odette interrupted with a sad smile. "But eet 'as given you somezing to zink about and consider non?"

Hermione turned her attention back to sky now filling with pinks, purples, reds, and oranges as her response slipped from her lips. "Yeah."

/

Veronique was in a particularly sour mood the next day as she sulked through the hallway, glaring at anyone who dared to even glance in her direction. Earlier that morning she had finally felt brave enough to just send a smile in Fleur's direction, hoping to start to make amends, but the smile only elicited a scowl and a growl to slip from the blonde's lips as her bright blue eyes started glowing dangerously. Fleur didn't have to say anything for Veronique to know the very real non verbal threat the veela just gave her.

She just couldn't comprehend Fleur holding onto this grudge for so long. Hermione Granger was nothing and she was never meant to end up with the elder Delacour, but here the champion was brooding over the bookworm; hell, she even gave her her beloved journal. Knowing that Fleur was losing sleep over Hermione Granger and not her was enough to make her skin crawl and made her want to lash out at the nearest person, but for appearance sake she was supposed to refrain from such things; something that was becoming harder and harder to do with each passing second.

It was at that moment, at her lowest point while she was walking the halls that Hermione Granger had the unfortunate luck of trying to pass her in the hallways. Just seeing the young Gryffindor was enough to set Veronique's teeth on edge; she was quickly losing control of the entire situation and her own anger had finally taken over so when Hermione tried to pass she roughly shoulder bumped the slightly shorter girl, sending the prefect's books tumbling to the ground. "Oops." Veronique smirked, feeling a sick sort of satisfaction at seeing the broken girl's belongings scattered all over the floor, but that feeling quickly vanished when she was met with golden eyes burning a hole through her and the prodigy's mouth set in a straight line. ' _Looks like ze scared little runt wants to bear 'er fangs.'_ It looked as if Hermione wanted to say something or do something to Veronique and that thought alone made a whole new type of anger flare through her veins.

"Don't do that again." Hermione spoke firmly, trying to contain her rage and impulse to punch Veronique in the face. ' _She's not worth it. She's not worth it. She's not worth it.'_ Hermione repeated that mantra in her head until she calmed down enough to kneel down to pick up her books, but just as her fingertips touched the book Veronique kicked it away.

Veronique plastered a fake smile on her face as Hermione rose to her feet once more, a fire burning in those bright amber eyes. "I'm afraid you cannot control me like you do wiz Fleur."

Hermione clenched her fists when Fleur's name slipped from those venomous lips; she wanted nothing more than to wipe the smug look off of the French student's face, but she steadied herself and once again tried to be the bigger person. "Just bugger off already." Hermione grumbled and turned her back to go pick up her books.

"Only eef you answer me one zing." Veronique smirked when Hermione paused in her steps and turned back around with a raised eyebrow.

"What?"

"'Ow did my leftovers taste?" Veronique's smirk grew into a big wicked smile when she saw the confusion swimming in Hermione's eyes.

"What the bloody hell are you on about now you viper?"

"Fleur, of course." Veronique shrugged and felt that sick sense of satisfaction start to fill her again at the look of hurt and utter defeat that entered Hermione's eyes. "Don't tell me you didn't know."

Hermione felt her heart drop into her stomach once more; she had asked Fleur if there was anything between her and Veronique on their date and she said no, they had never done anything and it seemed as if the raven-haired girl was hinting at the fact they had. There had been no mention of any such activities with Veronique in Fleur's book, but that confident look blazing in those green eyes told her that Veronique was telling the truth. She didn't want to believe it, it was far too painful to accept after everything that had already happened and she couldn't stand to hear it right now. "Shut up." Hermione mumbled, looking down.

"Oh dear, you didn't." Veronique laughed cruelly. "Who do you zink kept 'er bed warm when you wouldn't put out? Were you zat naïve to believe zat 'er needs were not being taken care of by moi?"

Hermione clenched her fists once more as images of Fleur and Veronique entangled in her bed where Hermione had been taken by the veela so many times that night invaded her head. She couldn't handle this; she was barely holding it together as it is so she turned around once more to leave, but the wicked witch was persistent.

"Tell me, when you were 'making love'. . ." Veronique used air quotes when she said making love and laughed that evil laugh that haunted Hermione's dreams. "Did she accidentally cry out my name? A force of 'abit I suppose." She smirked when she saw Hermione's shoulder's visibly tense at her antagonizing tone. "Did she do zat zing I taught 'er wiz 'er tong-"

Veronique's taunting was abruptly cut short when Hermione spun on her heel and punched her so hard right on her cheekbone that she stumbled back into the wall.

"Do yourself a favor and keep Fleur's name out of your mouth." Hermione grumbled as she shook her hand to try to relieve the throbbing in her knuckles; she hated that she still felt so protective of her ex-lover, but she couldn't stand to hear the wicked witch go on about the blonde like that even if she had utterly destroyed her.

"Fucking bitch!" Veronique growled as she righted herself, the sting from the punch fanning the fires of her own rage as she finally lost control and ran straight at the Gryffindor that didn't seem to expect retaliation.

Hermione let out a grunt when the dark-haired girl slammed her against the wall, her emerald eyes turning a dangerous shade of green as she cocked her own fist back. Hermione wasn't sure what happened, but one moment she was trying to relieve her sore knuckles and the next she was pinned against the wall. The last thing she saw was Veronique's fist swinging at her before she felt it make contact with her eye, the impact strong enough to make the back of her head hit the stone wall. She was completely dazed now and seeing stars, her whole world spinning and dark when she felt the fist make contact with her mouth, splitting her lower lip, and invading her taste buds with the flavor of copper.

Hermione blinked hard, trying to regain some sense of self when the blurry image of Veronique's fist hurling towards her again filled her vision, but was quick to move her head to the side this time out of pure instinct. As her senses came back to her she heard a crack and Veronique yelp as her fist made contact with the hard stone behind her. ' _Good.'_ Hermione thought with a scowl as she took advantage of the injured girl's distraction and gripped her shoulders with both hands, keeping her in place as Hermione quickly threw her knee high up and drove it right into Veronique's ribs three times. The impact was enough to make Veronique lean forward and left her open for the headbutt Hermione slammed into her nose resulting in a sickening crack.

A string of French curses slipped from Veronique's lips as she stumbled back, holding one hand beneath her nose to try to slow the blood that was pouring out at an alarming rate.

"Oi! Fight!" Came Seamus' weirdly cheerful voice at the sight of violence in front of him, successfully drawing the attention of any student nearby, but neither girl could be bothered to notice.

Hermione pushed herself off the wall as she stalked towards the other girl glowering at her; if Veronique wanted a fight then she was going to get one. "That one was for me, but . ." It was her turn now to slam Veronique against the opposing wall she had been pressed against and punch the Beauxbatons student in the eye so hard she was sure she would knock the girl out, but Veronique refused to go down. "That one was for Fleur."

The wicked witch stumbled to the side, but took hold of Hermione's robe, dragging her with her as she fought for control again. In turn Hermione gripped one of the foreigner's shoulders while her other hand gripped the cross around her neck, both of them struggling to get the other one to the ground. They tugged at each other, going further down the hallway, bumping into students who loudly protested until they reached the top of the stairs and lost their balance when they stepped on the edge of the first step.

One second they were fighting for dominance, then the next they were tumbling down the stairs in a tangle of arms and legs, both girls letting out grunts of pain as the hard stone steps bruised and battered their bodies until they crashed onto the cold floor of the entrance to the great hall.

They laid there for a moment while the unsuspecting students going to lunch looked at the pair with wide eyes, unsure if the girls were knocked out or recovering from the fall. Their question was answered when Hermione let out a moan of pain as she rolled away onto her back; she felt a sharp sting in her ribs, a telltale sign she had cracked one during the fall while Veronique rolled onto her stomach, holding her shoulder.

Amber eyes hazily looked over to the raven haired girl to see her getting onto her knees and reaching for her wand. ' _Oh no you don't.'_ Hermione growled to herself as she rolled back over to push herself up onto shaky legs and grabbed her wand while her other hand clutched her injured ribs. "Expelliarmus!" She shouted, sending Veronique's wand flying out of her hand so fast that it crashed into the wall behind her and cracked in two.

Veronique could only huff in defiance as Hermione limped over, holding her wand at eye level of the scowling foreigner. The raven-haired girl looked past the prefect and just now seemed to notice the crowd they had drawn slowly starting to surround them; another low blow to her pride. "Go on zen." Veronique seethed. "Finish eet."

Hermione's hand shook; her wand wavering back and forth made it painfully obvious she was fighting with herself now. She wanted to hex Veronique, wanted to make her suffer for what she did to her and even more so for what she did to Fleur and she was so close to doing it, but the feeling of something cold pressing into her side made her stutter in her steps. She curiously removed her hand from her ribs to see the cross necklace Veronique wore gripped in her hand; it must have gotten ripped off during the tumble.

She looked from the thick silver cross to the French student glowering at her and in that moment she knew what would hurt the evil girl the most so without hesitation she threw the necklace as hard as she could at the ground, making the hidden top pop off, causing the contents inside to spill out in front of everyone.

Emerald eyes widened and went to scramble to hide the pixie dust when the voice of Snape cut through. "What in the world is going on here?" He drawled as he made his entrance and glared at the prefect when he saw her holding her wand at the other girl kneeling on the floor threateningly. "Miss. Granger, lower your wand immediately." Hermione's eyes flickered from Veronique to Snape and reluctantly did as she was told while Snape's eyes dragged to the substance on the floor. "And what is this?" He scowled as he kneeled down, grabbing the necklace before Veronique could get her hands on it.

The potions professor brought the necklace up to his face and upon seeing what was inside his eyes darkened more than Hermione thought was possible. "Dumbledore's office. Both of you. Now."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> God . . . it was so fun to write Hermione beating Veronique's ass haha


	29. Bittersweet Symphony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so the time has finally come for the final chapter of Cruel Intentions. I took a lot of time and consideration for each and every scene in this chapter. I gotta say that it was super hard to try to end this on a note that felt true to each character. Now, as for musical inspiration for this chapter there were a couple. First "What is love" covered by Jaymes Young and for the third task I was listening to "City of the dead" by Eurielle and "Deep End" by Ruelle. As for the ending sequence I was listening to "Bittersweet Symphony" obvi but more the cover by the Riverdale cast, but the original is amazing as well :) Anyways, I'll shut up now and let you guys read. I will see you guys at the end of this tale :D

"You have to be kidding me." Hermione scoffed as she crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, wincing when she felt a sharp pain in her battered ribs the movement evoked. "It's not mine and you know it."

"Do I now?" Snape drawled, looking down at the beaten Gryffindor. "I always did wonder how you were able to get ahead of your studies and still find time to muck around with Potter and Weasley. I guess I have my answer now."

"What!?" Hermione started to stand from her seat, but promptly sat back down when an intense pain ripped through her body originating from the same ribs. "That's-"

"That's quite enough Severus." Dumbledore spoke softly as his eyes twinkled behind his glasses, but there was a warning in his tone that made the potions master snap his mouth shut.

"I assure you eet ees not mine eizer 'eadmaster." Veronique finally chimed in, putting on the most charming smile she could while trying not to outwardly show the pain she was in too.

Hermione rolled her eyes at the sickly-sweet innocent act the evil witch had decided to put on. "Oh bullshi-"

"Ms. Granger." Dumbledore intervened once more, giving her a look that told her to relax; he of course believed his student, he just needed confirmation from Madame Maxime that this girl was in fact lying about the necklace not belonging to her. He was quite sure he had seen the raven-haired girl wearing it daily, but one could never take chances in situations like this.

Veronique scowled in Hermione's direction, glaring heatedly at the prefect which was returned in kind, but the scowl was wiped from her face when Madame Maxime stormed into the room.

"What ees zis I 'ear about one of your students attacking one of mine!?" She bellowed as she stomped up to Dumbledore's desk, ignoring everyone else in the room to tower over the older man.

"She had it coming." Hermione grumbled, making Veronique shoot forward to defend herself, but Dumbledore held up a hand silencing everyone in the room.

"I promise you Ms. Granger will be punished accordingly, but I'm afraid there are more pressing matters than a petty fight."

"Petty fight?" Veronique growled. "Zat girl damn near killed me."

"You were the one that tipped us down the stairs." Hermione challenged the other girl trying to make her the bad guy.

"And you are ze one zat 'eld your wand to my face." Veronique spat.

"Only after you tried to pull yours on me!"

"Tell me 'Ermione . . ." Veronique's tone had lowered as she eyed the other girl with a sinister glint in her emerald orbs. "What spell was on ze tip of your tongue when your 'and was shaking?"

Hermione had her mouth open to retort, but when the question Veronique asked finally sunk in she snapped it shut as a haunted look entered those golden eyes.

"That is quite enough." Dumbledore took on a more stern tone when he saw how much the foreign student's question affected Hermione. "We are not here to discuss that. We are here to discuss this." Everyone's eyes snapped to the silver cross now dangling in the headmaster's hand with some pixie dust still settled inside and on the edge. "Does this belong to your student?"

Madame Maxime's eyes widened for a moment before they narrowed and turned on Veronique when she realized what the substance contained in the necklace was. "Oui."

"Non, eet-"

"I don't want to hear eet!" Maxime bellowed, cutting off the raven-haired girl. "I should go to ze auzorities for zis . . . zis embarrassment, zis blemish on Beuxbaton's record!"

" _ **No! Please don't! I swear I was-"**_ Veronique slipped into her native tongue to plead with her headmistress, but Maxime was having none of it.

" _ **One more word out of you and I WILL contact the authorities immediately."**_ The giant woman growled in such a threatening tone that it made Veronique close her mouth immediately. "I must apologize Dumbledore." Maxime's tone immediately changed when addressing the older man watching the interaction behind his spectacles. "I 'ad no idea she was doing zis."

"It's perfectly fine madame." He smiled kindly. "I understand your frustration and as a token of good will I will hand over the necklace so you may act as you see fit."

"What!?" Hermione and Snape said in unison, both stopping to look at each other in complete shock that they actually agreed on something.

Snape was the first one to break out of his stupor and turn his attention back to Dumbledore handing over the necklace. "Headmaster, you can't-"

"I can and I will Professor." Dumbledore's tone wasn't harsh, but Snape knew by how he spoke his word was final. The potions master just bowed his head, sending one last scowl in Hermione and Veronique's direction before he swept out of the room. "I trust you'll do what you deem is right." Dumbledore nodded to Maxime, dismissing the pair.

"Zank you Dumbledore." Maxime bowed slightly to show her appreciation before she sneered at the raven-haired girl, grabbing her roughly by the elbow and dragging her out of her seat even though the student winced in pain as she was pulled out of the room.

"Now. . ." Dumbledore let out a soft sigh before setting his worried gaze on one of his prize students. "What shall we do with you Ms. Granger?"

/

Fleur headed into the carriage after classes, not feeling particularly hungry as usual these days even though by how her bones now protruded from her body it was obvious she needed a good meal. She paused in the hallway when she saw a sea of blue gossiping. She furrowed her brow in confusion, going to move past the group when Odette and Gabrielle emerged, heading straight for their alpha.

"Fleur!" Odette was the first to speak while Gabrielle stood by apprehensively.

" _ **What is going-"**_

" _ **It's Hermione."**_ Odette interrupted her.

Fleur felt her heart drop into her stomach when she heard Hermione's name slip from her friend's lips. " _ **What about her? What happened? Is she okay?"**_ The questions spilled from the alpha's lips as a million horrible scenarios ran through her head.

" _ **She's okay."**_ Gabrielle quickly spoke, sending her girlfriend a warning glance. She knew that simple statement surely sent her sister spiraling. " _ **She just got in an altercation . . ."**_

Fleur's brow once more crinkled in confusion. " _ **An altercation?"**_

Odette and Gabrielle looked at each other uneasily for a moment before Gabrielle turned back to her sibling and spoke up again. " _ **With Veronique."**_

Fleur's confused look immediately turned to one of hatred and anger the second Veronique's name was spoken. " _ **What?"**_

" _ **They apparently got in . . . quite the fight."**_ Odette mumbled, looking down when she felt her alpha's waves of anger now washing over her.

" _ **I'm going to kill her."**_ Fleur growled as her arctic eyes started glowing before she started to push past the pair, but was stopped by Odette bravely grabbing her arm. " _ **Get your hand off of me. I'm not playing around this time."**_

" _ **I know, I know."**_ Odette carefully released her hold and took a step back when she felt the danger directed at her. " _ **It's just that Veronique is gone. She's been expelled."**_

" _ **For figh-"**_

Odette shook her head no. " _ **For the pixie dust. The necklace came off in the fight and Hermione threw it on the ground. I guess her dirty little secret is out."**_

Fleur stood there for a moment, taking in the information before she spoke again. " _ **Where is Hermione?"**_

" _ **My best guess is the hospital wing."**_ Gabrielle sighed as she rubbed the back of her head.

" _ **And if you know what's good for you, you will stay away from there."**_ Came Apolline's voice from behind the champion.

Fleur tensed at the cold tone, feeling her mother's irritation radiating off of her, but she hardly cared anymore. " _ **I'll go where I please."**_ Fleur grumbled as she turned on her heel to head out the door, but her mother stood in front of her, blocking her exit.

" _ **You embarrass your family with your transgressions and now it turns out you associate with drug addicts. If the press gets a hold of this information then we're in even hotter water than we already are. I won't allow you to humiliate the clan further."**_

" _ **I don't care."**_ Fleur sneered. " _ **Get out of the way."**_

Apolline straightened her back at her daughter's threatening tone and appreciated her glowing eyes even less. " _ **You won't continue to disobey me."**_ Her own eyes started to glow, matching the neon staring defiantly at her.

" _ **If you don't move, I will forcibly remove you."**_

Apolline felt her anger flare hotter in her chest at the challenge. " _ **I would love to see you try."**_

" _ **Stop!"**_ Gabrielle finally cried out, getting between the two fuming alphas. " _ **Just let her go mom . . . please. Can't you see Fleur is completely torn apart?"**_

" _ **Gabrielle."**_ Apolline softened her tone at the pleading in her youngest's voice while Fleur looked off to the side. " _ **I can't-"**_

" _ **Don't worry."**_ Fleur mumbled. " _ **I'm sure I can't be any more disappointing to you than I already am now."**_

Apolline opened her mouth to speak, but Fleur slipped past the matriarch before she could say anything else and escaped through the door, leaving her mom dumbfounded.

/

Fleur hastily wiped away a stray tear that fell down her cheek as she made her way back to the castle as quickly as possible without running. Once inside she made a beeline to the infirmary, taking the steps two at a time when she saw _her._ She paused in her steps at the sight of her ex-girlfriend limping down the stairwell with a little bit of difficulty, lightly clutching her ribs.

The foreigner sprung into action and found her voice once more when she saw the brunette wince and almost miss a step. "'Ermione." Fleur's voice came out softer than intended, but it was loud enough to catch the bookworm's attention and soon she found amber eyes looking at her with so many emotions swimming in them.

Hermione just stood there silently as Fleur hurriedly walked up the last couple of steps between them before gently grabbing the war hero's arm to try to steady her. "What are you doing?" Hermione mumbled, trying to remove her arm from Fleur's grasp.

"'Elping you." Fleur spoke firmly, refusing to step away from the other girl.

"I'm fine." Hermione grumbled, finally freeing her arm, but Fleur stepped in front of her, halting her from going any further.

Defiant blue eyes stared back at her, but almost immediately softened when she saw how broken Hermione's were. "'Ermione-"

"If you're trying to talk, this isn't the place." Hermione sighed as she eyed the students passing by trying to discreetly listen in on the conversation. "Come on."

Fleur was shocked when Hermione wobbled to a nearby broom closet, but snapped out of her daze after a moment when she saw the prefect struggling. She tried to offer assistance to the brunette, but it was quickly rejected with a swat of Hermione's hand. She begrudgingly let Hermione take the lead and when the door was finally shut she really took in her ex-girlfriend's appearance. There was a big red ring around her left eye, she favored one side of her body over the other, and had a gash down the center of her lip that looked like it had just stopped bleeding. She felt strings tug at her heart at the sight of the beaten Gryffindor and without a thought she stepped closer to Hermione.

"Fleur . . ." Hermione tried in a warning voice, but Fleur disregarded it.

"S'il vous plaît . . ." Fleur spoke quietly as she cupped Hermione's chin and ran her thumb gently over the brunette's swollen lower lip. "You're 'urt . . ."

Hermione just scoffed as she turned her head. "You should see the other girl." She mumbled the joke, but Fleur didn't laugh.

"Why aren't you at ze infirmary?" Fleur's voice started to grow upset. "Why 'aven't zey taken care of you?"

"Part of my punishment." Hermione rolled her eyes as she leaned back against the wall. "They healed all of the serious damage, but left the soreness and everything else as a reminder to not partake in fights."

"Zat ees ridiculous!" Fleur growled as she pulled out her wand and held it to Hermione's lip. "I will fix eet."

"Don't."

"Zey can't do zis. Just let me-"

"I read it." Hermione abruptly cut the other girl off, leaving Fleur to blink dumbly at her with her wand still in hand.

"You did?"

Hermione just nodded her head, gulping uneasily as she stepped to the side to try to put space between the two of them.

"And . . .?" Fleur looked down as she lowered her wand, that horrible feeling of dread filling her gut.

"I wish I could say I'm okay with the things you did before, but I'm not." Hermione sighed as she crossed her arms while Fleur clenched her jaw, trying to hold back her tears and shame. "But I believe you when it comes to me."

Fleur looked up at the last sentence, hope gleaming in those sapphire eyes. "You do?"

"Yes." Hermione nodded her head. "But what you did to those people, to me . . ." The Gryffindor seemed to choke on the words for a minute, but tried to compose herself. "It was horrible."

"I know 'Ermione." Fleur stepped closer to the Gryffindor, reaching for her, but when Hermione took a step back she paused her movement and dropped her hand. "I wish I could take eet all back."

"I know." Hermione's brown and blonde locks hid her face as she looked down. "I could have forgiven you if you had just told me . . ."

"I was just-"

"Scared." Hermione interrupted. "I know, but that is no excuse."

"You're right." Fleur conceded, biting her lower lip. "I was a coward and zere ees no excuse for zat."

Hermione seemed to scoff at the last statement, leaving the veela thoroughly confused; Hermione was nowhere close to cruel so her reaction didn't make sense. "Do you have a different excuse other than you were scared for not telling me about Veronique?"

Fleur furrowed her brow. "What do you mean?"

Hermione looked up, her golden eyes swirling with so much hurt and pain it made Fleur want to break down into tears all over again. "Really . . .? You're going to make me say it?"

Ice filled Fleur's veins and she was sure she was as white as a ghost in this moment; Hermione knew about Veronique and the occasional nature of their relationship. "I didn't zink-"

"You didn't think I'd find out, did you?" Hermione spat out bitterly.

"She wasn't important." Fleur weakly tried to defend herself.

"I asked you . . ." Hermione grit her teeth as she clenched her fists at her side and tears pricked at her eyes. "I asked you on our date if anything had happened between you and Veronique and you said no."

"I didn't zink zat would be ze appropriate time to tell you." Fleur sighed. "I was done wiz 'er by zat point. I didn't-"

"Did you fuck her while we were seeing each other?" Hermione asked so quietly Fleur wasn't quite sure she had heard her.

"What?"

"Did you . . ." Hermione let out a shaky breath, trying to steal her nerves before she spoke again; merlin forbid she sounded weak in front of the veela. "Did you fuck her while we were seeing each other?"

"Non!" Fleur answered quickly, horrified that Hermione would ever think that. "Of course not ma belle." She hurried over to the brunette and grabbed her hand, holding it in both of hers, but Hermione refused to meet her gaze. "Once we kissed I wanted nozing to do wiz 'er. I would never do zat to you 'Ermione."

"But you did . . ." Hermione stumbled on the word this time, she didn't want to say it again. "You know . . . while we were talking . . ."

"Ze last time we did . . ." Fleur looked off to the side, wanting to be careful of her wording before she turned back to Hermione, hoping for the Gryffindor to meet her gaze so she would see her sincerity. "Zat . . . was when you turned me down een ze prefect bazroom. Ze zings you said bozered me and I . . ." Fleur licked her suddenly dry lips as distraught amber eyes lifted to finally meet her own. "I couldn't get you out of my 'ead 'Ermione. I didn't understand. Eet drove me insane and terrified me so I did ze only zing I could zink to do. I felt even worse after and all I wanted was to see you again wezer I admitted eet to myself or not."

"Fleur . . ." Hermione weakly protested when the champion took a step to close the distance between them, her hand limp in Fleur's.

"I still can't get you out of my 'ead . . . " Fleur sighed as she closed her eyes. "I wish I could go back and redo everyzing, but just know . . ." Arctic eyes opened to bore into teary gold. "I would never do zat to you. I know I messed up a million times over and my word means next to nozing to you now, but I would razer die zan do zat to you. I 'ave 'ad ze best so why een ze world would I stoop to someone like 'er?"

"Damnit Fleur . . . you can't say things like that." Hermione choked out as she took a step away; she hated that she was crying in front of the veela once more, but she couldn't stop the floodgate when Fleur said those things.

"But eet's true." Fleur protested, her gut twisting painfully as she watched Hermione wrestle with herself.

The prefect all but curled in on herself as she struggled to speak. "It's just cruel at this point to say those things."

"Je suis désolé 'Ermoine . . ." Fleur tried to hold her own tears back as Hermione's hand slipped from her grasp. "I don't want to 'urt you. I-"

"I loved you." Hermione whispered as she looked down and held back a sob.

Fleur's brow furrowed and the little bit of light that was left in her eyes dimmed as complete and utter defeat weighed heavy on her shoulders. ". . . Loved?"

Hermione wished she didn't feel a painful tug in her chest that hurt worse than when Veronique punched her when she heard the champion's voice crack and break. She wanted so badly to correct herself and say 'love', but it hurt too much to even think to say the word. It felt as if Hermione was being torn apart from the inside and being near the blonde was just making matters worse and filling her with guilt. "I'm sorry. I just . . . I just can't do this right now." She mumbled before she brushed past the blonde as quickly as her injured body would allow, leaving Fleur numbly staring at the stone wall.

/

The next day Hermione found herself in the library hiding from the rest of the world and her friend's worried stares, especially after reading the scathing article Rita Skeeter wrote entitled "Golden Girl one step away from Azkaban". She was trying to immerse herself in a book, but failing completely when her mind kept straying to the blonde and the earlier fight with Veronique. She replayed the last moment in her head over and over again when she had the raven-haired girl on her knees, her hand shaking as she tried to contain her rage and hurt she wanted to inflict so badly on the other girl.

"Hey there Mione." Came Ginny's soft voice as she sat down next to her friend.

Hermione let out a sigh, frustrated that she was unable to escape. "Ginny, I don't want to-"

"I know." The chaser cut off her friend, giving her a small smile. "I'm not going to press you. I just didn't think that you should be alone right now."

Hermione couldn't help the eye roll that followed that statement as irritation filled her once more. "I'm not going to do anything Gin. I just needed to be alone to clear my head." Usually she would go to the lake to do such a thing, but since memories of Fleur lingered in every corner of the mystical water it was impossible for her to sit there and find comfort in the solitude there any longer.

"I'm just worried about you Mione." Ginny frowned, taking the prefect's injured hand in her own. "We all are. I just want to make sure you're okay. We don't have to talk if you don't want to. We can just sit in silence and that's cool with me. I just don't want you to feel like you're alone in this."

Hermione gulped, trying to swallow the knot in her throat as tears sprung into her eyes. She had so many conflicting emotions flowing through her that she didn't know what to do anymore; the one at the forefront of her mind was guilt. "Gin . . . I . . ." She looked down, searching for the words. "I could have killed that girl."

Ginny furrowed her brow in confusion at those words. "What do you mean Mione? You would never-"

"You don't understand." Hermione cut her off sharply, but regretted it when she saw the flash of hurt in Ginny's eyes. "At the end." She softened her tone and lowered her voice, afraid to say what had been going through her head out loud. "I had her on her knees, disarmed, and had my wand in her face." Ginny still looked confused and that wounded the prodigy even more. "My hand was shaking . . . I wanted to hurt her Gin . . . After everything she's done to me, to Fleur, I felt like she really deserved it. I wanted her to suffer and . . . I had so many horrible spells on the tip of my tongue and it would have been so easy to just do it. I was so close to-"

"But you didn't." Ginny frowned, gripping her friend's hand a little tighter. "I know after the whole . . ." She tried to find a delicate way to bring up Hermione's past, but struggled with how to do so. "Department of Mysteries thing you felt horrible even though that evil woman deserved much worse, but you have nothing to feel guilty about. I know you would never do something like you think you were about to do."

"But I almost did Gin!" Hermione's voice raised and filled with trepidation.

"But you didn't." Came Luna's soft voice. The dainty girl was running her fingertips over the spines of books, looking over the titles before her soft blue eyes landed on the pair. "I thought I already told you Hermione." She smiled over at the confused Gryffindors, floating over to take a seat across from the distraught war hero. "No one is one single thing. All evil or all good." She shrugged. "We all have dark impulses. Even me." She smiled shyly at the conflicted girl. "You could have hurt her and I'm very sure she would have deserved it, but you didn't. That's what matters."

Hermione looked down at the strange girls words that always muddled her thoughts, but always brought clarity at the same time. "I was so close though."

"I believe it." Luna nodded her head. "One can only be pushed so far before they lash out. You have a good soul though Hermione. I can feel it." She reached across, grabbing Hermione's free hand to emphasize her point. Hermione almost broke down in tears once more at the kind gesture, but held them back as she bit her lower lip. "And so does Fleur."

Hermione was so taken back from the last line that she retracted her hand with hurt covering her features. "Yeah, well . . . it's all a lot more complicated than that with her."

"I know." Luna smiled while Ginny eyed the other girl warily.

"Luna, I don't think Mione wants to talk about-"

"I'm sure she doesn't want to talk about Fleur." She turned her attention to the red-head. "I understand, but I think she needs to understand that time is limited. Hurt feelings and anger can really cloud someone's judgement." She turned back to the brunette with kind eyes. "You're running out of time to decide and pressure in no way will make it any easier, but there is a dangerous task fast approaching, far more dangerous than the last ones and I know you will regret not telling her how you really feel when you watch her walk straight into the line of fire. You really are a kind soul Hermione and you know the right thing to do. It's scary, I know, but I suppose that is what Veronique wanted; to scare you both away."

Hermione just sat in silence after the words the odd girl spoke, letting them sink in for a moment.

Sensing her work was done Luna gave one more serene smile to the war hero, reaching to pat her hand softly before she stood up. "I do so apologize for making this harder for you Hermione, but I'm sure you will do what is right for you and for her in the end." With that last statement the blonde walked away leaving the two Gryffindor's to sit and mull over her words.

/

It was finally the day of the last task and the whole school was abuzz with excitement; some were placing bets while others were pestering the champions which is why Hermione supposed Fleur remained in her carriage while her sister and Odette sat at the Ravenclaw table looking distressed.

Hermione scrunched her brow in thought; she had been going back and forth the last week as to what she should do, but now that the task was here she felt her heart drop into her stomach.

"You should go talk to them and find Fleur." Harry spoke softly into her ear.

Hermione quickly whipped back around, feigning ignorance as she attempted to take a bite of her salad. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Ron rolled his eyes at Hermione's actions. "And they say I'm thick." He flinched away on instinct when he saw the scowl overcome the brunette's features, holding his hands up defensively.

"Okay, I know what he was saying." Hermione grumbled as she dropped her fork, tapping her foot nervously as she fought with herself. "I just don't think I should-"

"There's no harm in talking to them." Harry shrugged. "I think all of the damage is already done anyways."

Gold eyes flickered over to the boy who lived for a moment, chewing on her lower lip before she seemed to make her decision and promptly walked over to the two veelas so deep in thought they weren't speaking to each other. "Everything alright?"

Two pairs of blue eyes flickered up to her and both girls promptly painted fake smiles on their faces. "Oui, of course." Odette answered.

Hermione raised an eyebrow, not believing for a second things were alright. "Where's Fleur?"

Gabrielle's smile saddened a bit. "She's um . . . resting."

Hermione looked down, letting out a sigh. "Did she at least try to practice or eat?"

"Oui." Gabrielle spoke softly, the light in her eyes dimming. "She tried."

Hermione felt her gut twist at the emphasis on 'tried'; she may be incredibly hurt by the alpha, but she in no way wished anything bad on her. "Where is she?"

Odette felt a spark of hope fill her chest when she saw the determined look in Hermione's eyes. "Een ze carriage. We could take you to 'er eef you like."

Hermione mulled the thought over, nervously shifting from foot to foot. She wanted to see Fleur, she knew that much. Having a week to think about Luna's words in detention definitely helped her come to that decision, but she had no idea what to say to the champion. She was in no way ready to reconcile with Fleur, the wound was far too fresh for that, but she couldn't stand the thought of her running into danger already defeated. "Could you?" She finally asked and when she saw both of their eyes light up she knew she had made the right decision.

The veela jumped to their feet and were quick to grab each of Hermione's hands, all but dragging her towards the carriage. "Oh 'Ermione, she will be so 'appy to see you. We 'aven't been able to get 'er to leave 'er room and zis will be just ze zing to get 'er motivated for ze task. She -"

They were just about out the door when Dumbledore's voice rang out, halting and quieting everyone. "It would seem the time has come for our champions to head to the quidditch pitch. Everyone please give them your well wishes and be on your way."

The smile immediately dropped from the three girls faces at the announcement. ' _I was too late.'_ Hermione thought as panic started coursing through her veins; she saw that same fear reflected in blue eyes.

"I guess you can speak wiz 'er after and-"

Before Odette could finish her sentence or Hermione could even question what she was doing she sprinted past the two girls and burst out the doors. Her heart hammered in her chest, her feet pounding on the ground as she pumped her arms to gain as much speed as possible. ' _I have to make it.'_ Was all she could think as she hurdled over a rock, stumbling a little when she landed on her feet, but she kept pushing forward, trying to pick up the pace when the carriage came into view.

She all but fell through the front door, almost crashing to the ground and startling a handful of Beuxbatons students lounging in the common area. Wild amber eyes looked around the crowd of people, ignoring the judgmental looks she received as she frantically searched for blonde hair and blue eyes. "Where's Fleur?" She asked everyone, but no one in particular. When she received only confused looks she just rolled her eyes and ran towards the veela's room, but when she opened the door that sinking feeling took over when she was met with an empty room. "Fuck." Hermione breathed out, resting her back against the wall and closing her eyes as her chest heaved. Her body was tired from the run already and her heart ached from the constant pain she had been enduring, but she had made up her mind. "I have to find her." She mumbled to herself as she opened her eyes, pushing herself off the wall although her body protested and went sprinting out of the carriage.

She let out an irritated growl when she saw the path to the quidditch pitch was littered with students from all school blocking her way. She was practically swimming through the students, shoving her way through big groups which earned her loud protests, but she ignored everything and everyone. She had one goal and she would be damned if she let anyone get in the way.

When she finally got to the pitch all she saw was Harry standing in front of the maze by himself, gripping his wand tightly. "Harry!" She yelled out, catching his attention. "Where's Fleur?"

All her friend could do was shrug. "I don't know Mione. They spread us out since we're all tied so we'll be entering from different sides."

"Damnit." Hermione cursed, looking off to the side.

"She vent that vay." Viktor grumbled as he passed by, pointing off to his right. He despised the veela for taking away what he hoped would have been a great relationship between him and Hermione, but he couldn't deny the prefect anything when he saw how upset and beside herself she was. At the end of the day Hermione was his friend and it didn't matter if he agreed with her decisions or not.

A big smile lit up Hermione's face. "Thank you Viktor." She quickly ran up to the seeker, going up on her tiptoes to give him a quick kiss on his cheek that made him blush before turning back to Harry. "I'm so sorry I can't give you more encouragement right now Harry, but I know you'll do wonderful." She spoke as she pulled her friend into her arms, hugging him fiercely which the messy haired boy returned.

"Don't worry about it Mione." He smiled into her hair. "Now go get her. Quick!"

Hermione just nodded her head, stepping away to look at both Viktor and Harry. "Please be careful you two. I know you want to win, but-"

"Go!" Harry laughed, pushing his friend towards the direction of Fleur. "Time is running out."

That statement seemed to set Hermione back on track. "Yeah, of course." She shook her head, wanting to smack her forehead; forgetful and airheaded was not something Hermione Granger was often described as.

She took off running as fast as her legs would carry her at this point, sprinting around the outside of the maze and then she saw her.

Fleur stood there in blue shorts and a black tank top, looking down as she lightly gripped her wand and then Dumbledore's voice suddenly boomed through the entire area, going into one of his speeches and spurring Hermione to move forward.

"Fleur!"

Bright eyes snapped up and looked off to the side to see Hermione Granger running towards her; she almost pinched herself in that moment thinking this had to be another cruel dream, but the cold mist hitting her skin reminded her this was in fact real. "'Ermione, what are-"

Before the blonde could finish her sentence the bookworm's body crashed into her own so hard she stumbled back, lithe arms wrapped around her neck, and soft lips pressed urgently against her own. She was in shock for a moment before realization dawned on her and she quickly wrapped her arms around the brunette's petite waist, holding her impossibly close as her eyes fluttered closed and kissed the girl who had been haunting her dreams.

The pair pulled at each other, fighting to bring the other into them as their lips danced, brushing gently for a second before pressing more firmly against the others. Hermione's arms untangled themselves from around her neck in favor of cupping the veela's cheeks with her hand's, deepening the kiss, but then pulling away when Fleur tried to lean forward to take things further.

Blonde lashes fluttered open, Hermione still gripped firmly in her arms as arctic eyes looked at her curiously. "Wha-"

"I love you Fleur." Hermione spoke breathlessly, running her thumb across Fleur's cheek. She felt relief flood her when she saw a spark back in those bright blue eyes and gently gripped the necklace meant for her securely around Fleur's neck. "I couldn't let you walk into danger without knowing that."

"'Ermione-"

"I still don't know what to do, but I couldn't stand the thought of you getting hurt or . . ." She gulped, looking down. "Dying, because you're out of sorts, because of me."

Fleur just gently lifted Hermione's chin so she could make eye contact with the clearly distraught girl. "I love you too 'Ermione." She smiled softly. "Zank you for doing zis. You didn't 'ave to."

Hermione just shook her head, still unsure as to what to say to the veela; her feelings were still so confusing, but she just knew she needed Fleur close for the time being. A canon being shot in the background signaled the task was meant to start and the maze opened up in front of Fleur, but Hermione just pulled the slightly taller girl into her, hugging her even tighter than she hugged Harry and buried her head in soft blonde locks.

Fleur just let out a sigh, not seeming to care her competition had an advantage as she gently ran her fingers through Hermione's hair. She stood there for a few moments in the prefect's warm embrace before duty called for her to enter the maze so with one last kiss to Hermione's temple Fleur disentangled herself. "I'll be careful 'Ermione. I promise." She smiled reassuringly at the other girl. "I mean, who else could possibly win zis competition? Krum?" She scoffed. "I zink not."

Hermione quickly wiped a tear as she watched Fleur walk backwards towards the maze. "Cocky git." She mumbled while Fleur just shrugged, a genuine grin now adorning her face before she turned around, heading into the hedges, and waving goodbye.

"I'll see you on ze ozer side ma belle." Fleur said over her shoulder with a smile before the hedges closed around her.

The loud cheers from the far-off audience suddenly disappeared and everything became eerily quiet as Fleur hesitantly stepped forward. It was hard to see with the heavy fog that settled in and over the hedges of the maze. The thick fog and dark setting made it near impossible for the veela to see so with a quiet "lumos" the tip of her wand lit up, giving her a tiny bit of light. She pressed onward opting to go straight instead of right, everything about her situation felt unsettling as she hooked a left this time; the silence was deafening and beyond unnerving.

All she could hear were her soft footsteps in the dirt and her nervous breathing as she turned another corner. The veela in her was screaming something was wrong, to turn back, but she knew she had to keep moving forward, she was a champion for a reason and would not be scared off by a maze and some fog; she just needed to be cautious. That's what she kept telling herself until she heard a twig snap behind her, making her freeze in her steps. ' _I did not step on zat . . .'_ She thought to herself, her brow starting to sweat as she looked down to make sure she in fact didn't step on a twig and when she saw nothing under her foot she felt her heart skip a beat.

She gripped her wand a little tighter, collecting her courage before she suddenly whipped around, wand at the ready only to be met with nothing but a soft breeze and the path she had taken lightly illuminated by her wand. She felt her heart start pounding harder and harder in her chest the longer she stood there waiting for something to jump out of the bushes. Her hand subtly shook as she took careful steps backwards, not taking her eyes off of the spot where she heard the noise.

She suddenly stopped walking backwards when the veela in her whispered ' _danger'_ and then out of pure instinct she ducked. She felt a strong breeze go over her head, her blonde locks whipping to the side as she looked up to see the thick club that barely missed her precious skull crash into the hedges nearby. Silvery blue eyes widened when she realized what it was that swung the giant club and it was gaining its bearings back quickly, pulling back to swing again.

' _Run!'_ The veela in her yelled, spurring her into action as the club came crashing down. She took off running as fast as her legs would carry her, jumping slightly when she heard the loud thump of the club hitting the ground quickly followed by a beastlike roar.

' _A fucking minotaur!?'_ She thought to herself as she desperately pushed for her legs to move faster. She could hear the minotaur's loud pounding hooves growing closer with each passing second, its irritated grunts filling her with dread and distracting her so much so that she didn't see the turn coming up. "Merde." She mumbled as she slid around the corner, barely getting her footing to keep sprinting when she heard the giant beast crash into the hedge right behind her.

She braved a look over her shoulder when she heard the loud sound and saw the minotaur angerly pulling itself from the bushes. If it was mad before, it was nothing compared to now. Blue eyes widened once more as the creature cocked its arm back and threw the club as hard as it could, sending it whirling towards the champion who had to completely drop to the ground, pressing her front into the dirt just to barely avoid the deadly weapon once more.

When she heard a loud thud up ahead she looked up and behind her to see the bull like creature charging at her, it's nostrils flared and head down ready to pierce her with its horn or trample her; the creature didn't really seem to care which one it was.

The foreigner was quick to scramble to her feet once more, scurrying down the narrow path and throwing spells over her shoulder in an attempt to slow the beast, but the spells just bounced off of the minotaur's armor as if they were pebbles.

She was about to turn another corner when the enraged creature caught up to her, grabbing her back the back of her shirt and throwing her roughly into a hedge. A groan slipped from her lips as she tumbled to the ground, the sharp thorns in the hedges left small painful scratches along her arms, legs, and face that stung. She tried to gain her bearings as she slowly brought herself to her feet on shaky legs as the world started to come back into focus. Her veela once more warned her of danger which she tried to dodge by weakly moving to the side, but wasn't quite fast enough to avoid the tip of the minotaur's sharp nails scraping across her side enough to dig four gashes one inch deep into her. She let out a scream of pain that was immediately silenced by the beast's big hand wrapping around her throat and lifting her up with one arm as if she weighed nothing.

The beast panted heavily in her face, it's black soulless eyes boring into her own as she gritted her teeth and gripped its wrist with both hands as if that would loosen the hold it had on her, cutting off the precious air she needed to get to her lungs. She looked down to the ground where her wand had been dropped, cutting off any chance she had of shooting her beam into the air to get help then saw a small boulder over the minotaur's shoulder. She cursed her luck and how careless she had been as the edges of her eyes filled with darkness. She knew this feeling well from the second task and knew she didn't have much more time before she passed out and if the creature kept squeezing after she lost consciousness she would surely die.

She felt defeated and the task had just begun. She uselessly kicked her legs as her body grew weaker; she didn't have much fight in her anymore anyways after everything that had happened. She was starting to not see a point in even trying to resist anymore, her eyelids growing heavy and closing and then she saw _her._

Fleur's eyes snapped open, her dull silver eyes now glowing neon blue as she stared defiantly back at the beast choking the life out of her. ' _I can't give up. Not yet.'_

"Get ze fuck off me you disgusting beast." Fleur growled as she threw a knee into the creature's ribs, making it lose its balance and loosen its grip, giving her the opening to raise her perfectly manicured nails and slash them across one eye.

The minotaur let out a howl of pain as blood filled its vision in its left eye, dropping the champion to the ground while it clutched its face.

Fleur knew she didn't have much time; she coughed for air as she crawled through the dirt to her wand, grabbing it with shaky fingers before she aimed it at the small boulder. "Wingardium leviosa." She wheezed out over the sound of shrieks of pain coming from the beast, surprised when she saw she had the strength left in her to lift the boulder.

Her eyes went wide again, desperately trying to get the boulder to her faster as the minotaur finally removed its hands from its face to show the angry red gashes across its eye. Its furious gaze fixed on the veela and started to stomp towards her with purpose while she crawled back as far as she could, but it wasn't far seeing as her back pressed against the hedges almost immediately. She desperately pressed her body as far back into them as she could go as the monstrous creature raised its fist to smash down on her and closed her eyes, praying the boulder had reached them in time as she released the spell. She waited for the pain that was sure to come, but nothing came and instead she heard a loud thump. She opened her eyes when the sound reached her ears and let out a breath of relief when she saw the creature knocked out on the ground.

She sat there for a moment, catching her breath and looking down each path, not wanting to linger too long as she wondered which one to take when she saw something or someone she didn't expect to see in the maze. "'Ermione?" She asked softly as she watched the prefect turn a corner and out of her view, completely ignoring the veela. "'Ermione." She rasped out as she once more brought herself to stand on shaking legs.

She took a step forward, but paused and grimaced when she felt a sharp pain rip through her body originating at her side. She gripped her side out of instinct and when she felt something warm and wet she pulled her hand back and saw blood on her fingertips. She looked down to her side and frowned when she saw the amount of blood pouring out and performed a quick spell to heal the wounds, but it only worked enough to slow the bleeding; she would definitely need professional medical attention to completely heal the wound, but this would have to do for now. "Damn minotaur." She grumbled, glaring down at the beast before she stepped over it, slowly walking towards the direction where she saw her ex-girlfriend disappear with one hand securely at her side to slow the bleeding.

"'Ermione." She tried again as she turned the corner, but what she saw next made her pause in her steps. Logically, she knew that what she was seeing couldn't be possible, but her emotions had a habit of ruling her these days. There stood Hermione in Viktor's arms, their lips locked, and arms firmly around each other, not seeming to care where they were or who or what could come upon them.

Fleur gritted her teeth at the image, her anger flaring more than when the minotaur had her in its deadly grasp while her heart simultaneously smashed into a million pieces. "Get off 'er." Fleur tried to sound menacing, but her voice came out weak and defeated instead.

It seemed like that was enough to catch both of the lover's attention, halting their rendezvous while Viktor looked over to her with a wicked smirk on his face.

"Why ever for Fleur?" Hermione turned around with a far more sinister smile than Viktor's. "It's not as if we're together anymore. You don't own me."

"I know I don't, but-" Fleur started, but Hermione didn't seem to care about anything she had to say.

"And besides, you ruined everything. Viktor would never hurt me like you did." Hermione affectionately ran a finger down the Bulgarian's chiseled jaw, making the seeker smile before she turned her attention back to the veela with a cold look in those normally warm golden eyes as she zeroed in on the blonde.

Fleur bit her lower lip, trying to stay strong. "You know I didn't mean to 'Ermione."

Hermione just laughed, getting closer to the other champion. "Yeah, you didn't mean to place a bet on my virginity to ruin my image. I was supposed to be your greatest conquest. Taking the golden girl's virginity before the third task; imagine what that would do for your reputation." Fleur's eyes widened at the wording Hermione used; those were the same ones she had used in the carriage when she placed the bet. "What's the matter Fleur?" Hermione smirked. "Cat got your tongue?"

"'Ermione, I-"

"You know Fleur, I was right about you." Hermione narrowed her eyes, that evil playful glint in her eyes now gone. "You are as vapid and empty as I thought you were."

"But you just said before ze task-"

"I lied." Hermione shrugged. "How does it feel?" She raised an eyebrow, unperturbed by the broken expression on Fleur's face. "Does it hurt?" She pushed. "Knowing that everything you knew was a lie?"

"'Ermione, s'il vous plaît." Fleur pleaded, but her pleas fell on deaf ears.

"I never loved you." Hermione spat out, glaring at the veela on the verge of losing it. "I just wanted you to think everything was going to be okay so you could have a taste of what it felt like to have your world shatter around you. To be completely humiliated. To . . to . . " Hermione furrowed her brow mid-rant, a pained expression replacing the anger she wore before.

Fleur immediately felt panic fill her chest when she saw the pain written all over Hermione's face. "What ees wrong?" She took a step forward only to have Hermione crumble at her feet, holding onto her chest as if her heart was being ripped from the flesh. "'Ermione, please, tell me what ees wrong." Fleur cried as she dropped to her knees, frantically grabbing at the prefect so she could assess the damage.

"You did this to her." Came Viktor's cold voice and even colder stare.

"What are you talking about?" Fleur spat, looking up to see Viktor staring down at the pair disapprovingly.

"Vhy did you do this? She could have been happy vith me, but you . . ." He shook his head and looked down as he clenched his wand tightly in his hand. "You just had to taint her like you do everything else. You destroyed her." He growled as he lifted his head and wand at the same time, aiming it at the veela. "You're going to pay for vhat you did veela." He snarled as his wand started to glow green at the tip, making blue eyes widen. "Avada-"

"Riddikulus!" Came a deep voice from behind Fleur and suddenly the Viktor standing in front of Fleur turned into a clown, juggling balls before it sunk into the ground and disappeared along with the war hero in her arms.

The blonde sat there confused for a moment, blinking dumbly at her now empty hands.

"Are you alright?" Came that same voice, making the champion turn to see the real Viktor holding his hand out to her.

She just nodded her head as she carefully took the offered hand and was brought to her feet. She took a moment to take in the Bulgarian's appearance and just like her he looked worse for wear. "Why did you . . . I zought-"

"I may not be your biggest fan, but I could not stand by and vatch you die veela." He grumbled as he awkwardly moved his weight over to his other foot.

"Zank you." Fleur mumbled softly.

Viktor nodded his head, limping forward a bit to assess the road in front of them and when he saw no danger he let out a relieved sighed. "Ve should probably stick together if ve vant to live." He spoke as he leaned his back against the hedge. "But vhen ve see the cup then it is everyone for themselves."

"I zink zat would be best." Fleur agreed. "But we need to find-" Before Fleur could even say the other champion's name Harry came sprinting around the corner and crashed into the blonde. "Merde." Fleur groaned as she lifted herself up a bit.

"S-sorry. Didn't see you." Harry spoke quickly as he helped Fleur up and looked over his shoulder; there was a slight tremble in his voice immediately putting the two other champions on edge.

"'Arry, what ees-"

"No time to talk. We really need to be running." Harry cut off the veela and promptly sprinted off in the opposite direction he came from with the other two champions close behind.

"Harry! Vhat are ve running from!?" Viktor was able to yell out, but Harry didn't need to answer. A giant spider crashed through the bushes, hot on the trio's tale as they turned left, running as fast as their battered limbs would carry them.

"Great. Just what I needed. A giant spider." Fleur groaned as they turned another corner with the eight legged creature hot on their tail. "We 'ave to stop eet."

"How!?" Harry cried over his shoulder.

Fleur furrowed her brow, trying to come up with something, anything, and then a smile lit up her face. "I 'ave eet."

She stopped mid run, making the two boys stop as well, watching the veela curiously as she waved her wand and shot a spell at the spider fast approaching them, but instead of hitting the creature, it hit the hedges. "You missed!" Viktor hissed, but Fleur just shook her head, calmly standing there as the giant creature grew closer.

The boys flinched when it got within a foot, but Fleur stood steady as a loud screech emitted from its mouth as vines shot out from the hedges wrapping around its legs and body, halting it from moving even an inch. "I guess I did learn somezing from ze second task." Fleur grinned as she turned back around, taking a right while the two seekers dumbly followed.

They walked for a minute, taking comfort in their numbers and not feeling nearly as on edge as when they were alone when a strong breeze struck all three champions, making Fleur's hair whip around. She furrowed her brow, looking in the direction of where the breeze came from and when she saw the blue trophy glowing in the distance her eyes widened.

The three stood there awestruck for a moment before they each turned to look at each other; there was a minute of calm between them before suddenly they all seemed to snap and took off sprinting in the direction of the cup. They were all so close and equally injured; they knew it was anyone's game at this point so they pushed and shoved each other as they tried to get the upper hand.

Fleur was obviously smaller so when Viktor tried to push her she easily dodged, making him fall into a hedge when his momentum made him propel forward. She heard an irritated yell erupt from behind her and saw the cause. The hedges were closing behind her and Harry, effectively pushing the Bulgarian out and ruining his chances at the cup.

She briefly shared a look with Harry as they ran down the quickly narrowing maze, they knew they were the last two contenders. The hedges were closing in faster and faster, getting closer to trapping the two, but Fleur was the first to make it out and when she turned and saw Harry about to be consumed by the maze she quickly grabbed his hand and pulled him out before he could be taken.

"Thanks." He breathed heavily as they both leant forward with their hands on their knees trying to catch their breath.

"You would 'ave done ze same for me." She smiled lightly before she looked up to see the glowing blue trophy so close.

Harry followed her line of sight and let out a defeated breath. "You should get it. You deserve it."

"I can't-"

"Viktor and I would have been long gone with that spider had you not stopped it." Harry quickly reasoned before Fleur could argue.

"And I would 'ave died 'ad Viktor not saved moi from a Boggart. I want to win fair and square as you english say." She shot back, making Harry shake his head with a smile.

"Alright then." Harry straightened out, rubbing his sore shoulder as he eyed the trophy. "On the count of three then?" Fleur just nodded her head as she crouched down, ready to take off running. "One . . ."

"Deux . ."

"Three!" Harry shouted and they both took off as fast as their legs would carry them.

Fleur could feel her entire body protest as she pushed it far past its limits, but the end was so close in sight. Victory was within her grasp and she would not give up so she kept running even though her body screamed for her to stop. Roots started shooting out from the ground, lashing out to grab or trip the champions, but Fleur was quick to jump over them. Harry did the same and they were both within a couple feet of the cup; they shared one last look before they jumped towards the trophy and eternal glory.

/

The once quiet air surrounding Fleur was suddenly filled with raucous applause and loud cheers. She was laying flat on her stomach with her eyes closed, unsure of what happened, but slightly aware that there was something in her grasp.

When she opened her eyes she was met with the glowing blue of the Triwizard trophy in her hand and when she looked up she saw a sea of blue running to greet her with her sister and Odette in the front. " **You did it!"** Odette beamed as she helped her friend up and immediately enveloped her in a hug with Gabrielle.

" **I did?"** Fleur asked dumbly when she stepped away, reality dawning on her as she looked down to see the cup still in her grasp. " **I won?"** A grin spread across her face and pride filled her chest.

"Fleur Delacour is the winner of the Triwizard Tournament!" Dumbledore's voice boomed through the entire area, making the students cheer even harder and if Fleur didn't know any better she would think the wink Dumbledore sent her meant he was proud of her even though she isn't his student.

" **Well done."** Apolline spoke with her usual regal demeanor, but a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth betrayed her usually calm appearance, showing her rare pride of her daughter. " **I knew you would win. You are a Delacour after all."**

Fleur couldn't help but scoff and roll her eyes, the big smile refusing to leave her face as she searched the crowd for a familiar head of brown hair, but when she didn't see Hermione anywhere the smile dropped from her face for a moment before she was engulfed by the entire student body that came from Beuxbatons. She remembered where she was with the sea of blue surrounding her and quickly plastered the smile back on her countenance, but it was void of any really happiness now. Without Hermione with her the victory felt hollow and meaningless.

/

The next day Fleur collected her things, making sure everything was in order before they departed to head back to France. She had been quiet since her victory, half-heartedly participating in the post-game activities; she knew she was expected to be ecstatic, but she couldn't shake the overwhelming feeling of sadness coursing through her veins.

" _ **She hasn't come to say goodbye?"**_ Odette frowned as she approached her alpha who just numbly shook her head. " _ **We still have a little time. Do you want to wait outside?"**_

" _ **I doubt she'll show."**_ Fleur mumbled, but was dragged out of the carriage none the less.

She sat there waiting with Odette and Gabrielle as her peers excitedly chatted next to them, still buzzing from the victory while Fleur just stared at the ground.

" _ **Alright girls. It's time to go."**_ Maxime smiled as her students said goodbye to the Hogwarts and Durmstrang students promising to write each other or hang out after graduation.

" _ **Guess she isn't coming."**_ Fleur sighed sadly, gripping the necklace hanging around her neck as she fought back tears. " _ **Figures."**_

"Fleur!"

The foreigner's ears perked when she heard the familiar sound of Hermione's voice that was clearly out of breath. "'Ermione." Fleur turned around, smiling softly at the slightly shorter girl.

"Do you have time to talk?" Hermione asked as she fidgeted with her tie, a nervous habit that still clung to the golden girl that made the veela smile.

"I zink we are-"

"Take your time." Maxime cut in, gently placing her hand on her student's shoulder with an understanding smile before she ushered the girls into the carriage to give her star pupil a little space.

Odette and Gabrielle shot Hermione a smile, pulling the prodigy into a hug and whispering their goodbyes before they retreated into the carriage to give their alpha some much needed space.

Fleur turned her attention back to the bookworm, a million questions swimming through her head. "I did not zink you would come . . ."

"I couldn't let you leave without saying goodbye." Hermione smiled sadly at the blonde. "I was just busy taking care of Harry is all. He was pretty banged up after the task. Are you . . ." Hermione seemed nervous and worried as she eyed the other girl carefully. "Are you okay?"

Fleur nodded her head in response. "Oui. A little worse for wear, but nozing I can't 'andle."

"Congratulations by the way." Hermione spoke as she rocked back and forth on her feet. "I hear it was quite the task."

"Eet was." Fleur agreed as she looked off to the side, unsure of what to say or where this conversation was going. "Listen-"

"Fleur-"

Both girls spoke at the same time, making them shake their head and smile. "You go first 'Ermione."

"N-no, you go."

Fleur let out an uneasy sigh as she ran a hand through her long blonde locks. "What now?"

Hermione furrowed her brow in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Are we done?" Fleur asked softly, looking down, unable to see the answer she wasn't sure she wanted to see in Hermione's eyes.

"I . .." Hermione seemed to be at a loss as the wheels in her head struggled to come up with an answer. "I don't know."

Fleur looked up, confusion swimming in those arctic eyes. "You don't know . . .? 'Ermione, I am leaving . . ."

"I know." Hermione shot back a little too quickly. She took a calming breath, reminding herself to speak clearly to help Fleur understand. "I know." She spoke quieter this time, her amber eyes softening as she locked eyes with silvery blue. "It's just all very confusing Fleur . . ." Fleur nodded her head, swallowing the lump in her throat as she looked down, but was surprised when she felt a soft hand cupping her cheek and bringing her gaze back to sad amber. "I love you Fleur. I know I do . . ."

"But . . ." Fleur spoke up; her heart was throbbing, but she understood all too well there was a but coming.

Hermione let out a slow breath as tears pricked her golden eyes. "I just can't be with you right now."

Fleur nodded her head as she tried to keep her composure. "I zought zat might be what you were going to say."

"I'm so messed up right now and so confused by what to feel or what to do. It doesn't mean I will stop loving you or that I don't still want you. I just need time."

Fleur felt a little spark of hope at those words and brought her hand to Hermione's on her cheek. She moved the prefect's hand so she could kiss her palm and smiled softly at the girl who looked just as broken as she felt by this conversation. "I understand 'Ermione . . . and . . ." Fleur took a step closer to the other girl, pulling her into a hug. "I will wait as long as I 'ave to. I will never stop loving you and . . ." She pulled back a bit, holding the war hero at arm's length while a stray tear fell from amber eyes. "Just know . . . zat eet ees never too late. Even eef you zink eet ees, I promise eet won't be."

Hermione just nodded her head, holding back a sob as Fleur smiled softly, carefully wiping a tear from her ex-girlfriend's cheek. Hermione responded by leaning forward and placing a soft kiss right on the corner of Fleur's mouth, letting her lips linger for a moment while Fleur closed her eyes, relishing in the soft touch of Hermione Granger's lips. Hermione wanted to flat out kiss the blonde again, but she knew if she did it would be far too painful and far too hard for her to say goodbye so she told herself this would be enough for now. "Thank you for understanding." Hermione spoke softly as she pulled away with a sad smile.

"Will you write me?" Fleur couldn't stop herself from asking the question; she knew she might be pushing it, but she hoped that she may at least hear from the golden girl while she was pulling herself back together.

Hermione smiled and leaned in to kiss Fleur's cheek. "Yes."

Fleur suddenly felt a lot better about the situation and let out a relieved sigh, squeezing the prefect's hand. "Parfaite. I should . . . probably go. I am 'olding up ze carriage."

"Yeah." Hermione agreed dejectedly as she watched a tear fall from those eyes that captivated her from the first moment she saw them. "You'll be good, won't you?"

Fleur couldn't help the soft laugh that came from her lips as she nodded her head. "As 'ard as eet may be to believe I promise I will be good . . . for you."

Hermione felt her heart swell in her chest at the veela's words. "Good."

They stood there for a moment, neither one of them wanting to really leave, but both knew the clock was ticking. "You do whatever you 'ave to do to feel better 'Ermione." Fleur smiled as she leaned forward and placed a lingering kiss on the prefect's forehead. "I'll be waiting. I promise."

Hermione returned the smile as Fleur finally took a step back and released her hand. "Goodbye Fleur."

Fleur smiled almost dreamily at the prefect, making Hermione's knees weak even though there was a hint of sadness in Fleur's bright eyes as she opened the door to the carriage. "Goodbye ma belle."

**6 months later**

Fleur let out an irritated huff as she walked down the streets of France, her heels clicking loudly on the ground as she headed towards her favorite café in a tight fitted gray dress. Even after graduating she was still the perfect image of poise and beauty, even more so now even though her mother had been particularly taxing that day, going over her soon to be responsibilities and what leading the clan entailed. It still bothered Fleur to no end that she treated her like a child and if she knew that her eldest daughter found her escape at some middle-class coffee place she would lose her mind, but the place brought her peace. It was where she had her first date with Hermione Granger after all and that thought alone brought a smile to her face.

The soft noise of a bell ringing overhead as she walked in dragged the veela even further into her thoughts, making her look to the table where she had sat with Hermione after staring at art for hours. She felt joy and a soft pang of sadness hit her in the chest at the memory of their day out.

She shook her head, clearing her thoughts, trying to not get lost in memories as she started to head towards the counter when she heard a familiar laugh that made her stop in her steps. Her bright blue eyes widened and immediately shot to where the sound came from and then she saw _her_ sitting at a table laughing at some article she was reading as she sipped her coffee.

Hermione Granger looked even more beautiful than the day Fleur met her, her jaw a little more thin and defined, her eyes held a little more knowledge in them and then as if Hermione could sense the ex-champion's admiring gaze she looked up. Their eyes locked and everything stopped; the only thing that proved time still continued to move was the smile that slowly spread across Hermione's face, lighting up the whole room as Fleur smiled back.

**The End**

**JK! *in Oprah voice* Look under your seats! THERE'S A SEQUEL!**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooo, if you haven't read Cruel Intentions before . . . SURPRISE! There is a sequel :D It's called Turn Back Time and I will be posting what I have of that very shortly if you haven't started reading it on fanfic already :) I just want to say thank you one more time to everyone who bothered to read this story. It means a lot :)

**Author's Note:**

> If you haven't read this fic before . . . I hope you're ready for the insane journey you're about to go on haha Reviews and comments are always appreciated :)


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